More Than the Sun
by ScreamingSlugs
Summary: Lotus and Eric, sitting in a tree- K.I.S.S.I.N.G! First comes love, then comes marriage, then comes Lotus with a baby carriage! Pam's pretty pissed about it, too. Warning: Mature content throughout.
1. Chapter 1

**1**

The vibration of my cell phone in the pocket of my Bermuda shorts in startled me, and Marci because she had been pushed against me at the stall thanks to the thick traffic the bazaar had brought out. In addition, it was post Mardi Gras week, so there was lots of extra traffic in the narrow side street now that the tourists didn't have the parade attractions to occupy them, and their bellies had soured on the excess drinking in which they had partaken during the springtime melee.

"Is that him? Is he finally here?" she asked, redirecting Patricia's attention from the horrendous scarves she was contemplating purchasing. Both she and Marci were anxious to meet my boyfriend. They had yet to meet him even though we had been together nearly three years; they were definitely going to be flabbergasted when they met him, which is why I had held off on the introductions until now. We were moving in together, which I had yet to announce, and since Marci and Patricia were my best friends, they deserved to know. Besides, we had the kind of friendship where we often just dropped by each other's homes on a whim; coming across Eric there might cause my friends a heart attack.

"I haven't answered it yet, so how would I know?" Marci rolled her eyes at my teasing grin. Marci had always been easily excitable.

"I can smell you." Eric's familiar, sensual tone filled my ear after I said 'hello.' Immediately, I felt the all too intense downstairs tickle kick into gear. That was his intention, clearly. "Hmm. I can really smell you now."

"Very clever. Where are you?" Keeping my voice at a respectable octave was proving to be very, very difficult.

"Here I am." His voice was in my other ear, and his hand slipped around my side to rub over my bellybutton, only to disappear so decorum was maintained in the busy public street. "Godkväll, kär."

I caught a glimpse Marci's jaw falling to the ground and Patricia's face loosing all the blood beneath her skin, causing her naturally medium toned skin to pale dramatically when I turned to let Eric kiss me in greeting. I hoped that they would get themselves together quickly and not let their shock embarrass them.

I also hoped that they were as tolerant as I thought them to be.

Unfortunately, they hadn't composed themselves when Eric had taken his lips off mine and turned his attention to my companions. Marci's mouth was still gaping and Patricia looked like she was on the verge of fainting.

"Hello, I am Eric." My boyfriend was as nonchalant about my friend's manner-less behavior as they were surprised about his race. He answered the question hanging in the air that neither of my friends could allow past their lips. "Yes, I am a vampire."

Marci managed to close her mouth and shake her short stupor off to introduce herself. She made the awkward gesture of offering her hand to Eric; vampires do not shake hands. After a quick brush off by myself of the manners misstep, Patricia swayed visibly.

"Please, do not faint." Eric said, his icy blue eyes shining from the lights of the streetlamps. I understood that Eric did not mean any rudeness by his statement, since I knew him so well, but Patricia did not. Her perception of his statement as impolite brought a little blood back to her face, steadying her enough for her to reply.

"I shall faint if I see fit." She retorted, not meeting Eric's eyes. It wasn't his height that caused her to neglect eye contact, but the misguided belief that a vampire would glamour a person at first sight. "I would be well within my right to, since I only just found out with no forewarning that one of my best friends has been dating a vampire for the past few years!"

"Patricia, it's not that big of a deal." Marci said, being as gentle as possible as she tried to let Patricia know that her attitude was inappropriate.

"I disagree, Marci. It is that big of a deal, since I don't think it's okay that my friend is being used as a living, breathing meal."

"That's unfair." I said. Patricia's words were hurtful; her assumptions were also incorrect, which made the words sting that much more.

"It's also a private matter between myself and Lotus." Eric added, his tone frigid. Patricia cut her eyes up at Eric, who, at six foot four, towered over Patricia's five foot two. She did not try to avoid eye contact with him, since she was so angry that she forgot to not meet his eyes. Patricia looked ready to leap at Eric at any second if she felt the need. "However, in the interest of making peace with each other for the sake of your friendship with Lotus, I would be willing to answer whatever questions to which you desire an answer."

"Fine." Patricia agreed. She crossed her arms across her chest and opened her mouth to ask a question.

"Let's move this away from the street faire, please." I interrupted, taking Eric and Patricia both by the elbows and steering them toward the little French coffee and tea shop a few blocks down the street.

Marci took my place beside Patricia as we walked in an attempt to diffuse the tension between my boyfriend and my friend. I gave her a look that conveyed my thanks and she winked at me in the coy way she had. She had no problem with my boyfriend being a vampire.

We sat outside the shop on the cute, Parisian-style patio although the wrought iron tables still were hot from baking in the blistering Southern sun all day. As he often did, Eric crossed his long arms on the table. His cold flesh steamed when it came in contact with the hot metal. Both Marci and I could not stop ourselves from laughing at the sight and sound of the condensation rising from under Eric's arms. He couldn't resist a smirk, either.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw that smirk. In our most intimate of encounters, he often wore that smirk, and it just as often could make me melt without him intending it to do so. He looked over at me from where he sat beside me, directing that alluring semi-smile at me, able to hear the beating of my heart increase. Teasing me, he said upon more than one occasion, was a favorite pastime of his.

We discussed the menu as we waited for the waitress, but avoided the subject of what he had come to discuss. When the waitress arrived, we discovered that we had a problem; she was a Creole, who only spoke French, which wasn't uncommon in New Orleans. Marci and Patricia exchanged worried glances. The three of us had only taken Spanish classes in college as it was more prevalent in our area of the state.

"Nous serions comme deux lattes, un sans fouet, un chai latte de thé, également sans fouet, et un chocolat Royalty, s'il vous plait."

I had expected Eric to save the day, but Patricia and Marci had not. Marci nodded her approval and thanked him for his assistance, while Patricia squeaked a perfectly polite and perfectly cold 'thank you' as well.

The waitress hid her surprise after an initial facial expression change when she heard Eric order the chocolate Royalty; she had not recognized him for what he was as my two friends immediately had, but she clearly welcomed his entrance to her life. I didn't know what she was saying to him, since I did not speak French, but I could without doubt see and hear that she was coming on to him. The lengthening of her neck was a dead giveaway, even to Patricia. Even though she was conflicted about the identity of my lover, she did not approve of another woman unabashedly propositioning him in front of me. As she sat up as straight as she could, Eric raised his hand casually to her.

"Don't worry," he told her, without a hint of pride in his face or voice as a typical man would have in a situation like this, since it was a major self-esteem boost. The fact that he did not find the situation amusing won him a few points with Patricia. "I'll handle it." He turned his face back to the waitress and spoke to her with a kind, but firm voice.

"Merci pour votre offre, madame, mais je suis dans une relation. J'aime ma petite amie trop à s'engager dans une n'ya rien que je puisse recevoir de vous avec laquelle elle n'a pas déjà me fournir. J'ai aussi ne pas boire sang humain, et bien que j'apprécie votre offre, je dois refuser. "

The woman hung her head in the unmistakable manner that a woman does when she has been irrefutably turned down, and excused herself. Silence took hold of our group for a long moment.

"Well, whatever you said, I don't think she'll be back." Marci summed up. I grinned to myself, hiding my mouth behind my hand.

"Excuse me." We all turned our attention to the two small, older ladies that were passing by in the street. The one who had spoken looked to be the oldest, her hair as white as snow and curled up precisely against her head. "We just happened to overhear the exchange you had with the young lady, and I wanted to say that you are a sweet young man- well, you can't hardly be young, being what you are. You are probably our senior! Those nuances aside, your belle is certainly very lucky to have you so devoted to her."

I felt a blush creeping up my neck and onto my cheeks while Eric conversed politely with the old ladies who could only be described as tickled pink to be talking to a handsome and gentlemanly vampire. Luckily our drinks arrived via the hands of another waitress- to the delight of the old ladies, who obviously relished a scandal- so I was able to avoid much of the most embarrassing aspects of conversing with the blue hairs.

The waitress placed the drinks at the end of the table on their little tray, next to me, giving me the task of distributing them when she was called away by her superior. I extended the plastic cups to Marci and Patricia who were glad to have their mouths occupied so they didn't have to entertain the old women.

"Ouch!" I cried out, nearly tipping Eric's drink over in the process. The glass bottle was scalding hot; the rejected waitress had heated the bottle in the microwave in hopes that it would cause the vampire that rejected her momentary pain, but instead I had picked it up. Because of her inability to accept being rebuffed all five of my fingers were very badly burnt. I was lucky that I hadn't grabbed the bottle with my full palm or the burn would be much worse.

"Let me see, älskara." Eric took my hand in is, dwarfing mine. The burns alone were enough to bring tears to my eyes but even his light touch made the pain excruciating. "I do not mean to cause you pain. Will you permit me to help you?"

"Please." I wanted the pain to stop. I snuck a glance at my fingertips then wished that I had not. Not having any experience with such things, I wasn't certain, but I wagered that the top few layers of my skin were burned right off.

"Hold still."

Patricia made a noise of protest as Eric ducked his head and brought my fingers up to his mouth discreetly, so that it would not attract attention from the other shop patrons. The old ladies watched intently, more excited than they had been in years to see something so exotic from a most fascinating creature. Marci seemed to be as interested as the old ladies. I had a fleeting image pass through my head of Marci in about fifty years, looking and acting just like the old ladies. Maybe one day I would be her companion. These thoughts were wiped from my mind as Eric's lips pressed against my index fingertip, the usually sensual action sending fiery shots of pain down my nerves. The pain was instantly quelled by the gentle lapping of his tongue against the wound, the magical healing quality of his saliva jump starting the regeneration of the skin of my fingers. Within seconds, my finger was healed.

Just as quickly as he began the action, he was finished. My fingers showed no signs of having been harmed, and the only evidence of what had transpired was the automatic appearance of Eric's fangs.

"Excuse me." He said, retracting his fangs. Doing so at this moment was difficult for him, I knew, because he had surely tasted my blood as he healed me, and his bloodlust typically coupled with bodily lust.

"Thank you." I wiped the tears away from my eyes with one of the generic napkins provided by the shop. Eric leaned over and kissed my forehead in a rather uncharacteristic and loving way, winding his hand around to the back of my head as he did so. The forehead kiss was unexpected, but he head holding was not; he was the type of man that liked to grasp the back of his lover's upper neck in the throes of passionate osculating. I did enjoy this characteristic of his, and to experience it in this much less sexual, but no less intimate way, brought a warmness to my heart that can't fully be described.

"Anything for you, Lotus." With his free hand, Eric motioned over with just a slight gesture of his index and middle finger the manager of the shop, who had had his eyes trained on our table unbeknownst to anyone but Eric.

"How may I help you, monsieur?" the manager, a gangly, thoroughly plain middle aged man said, clearly nervous. He knew what Eric was, and he knew what his employee had done.

"Your employee has injured my partner, sir, and I will not tolerate such grievances."

"I am sure I have no idea what you mean."

"As I am certain that you are lying to me as surely as you are breathing." The tension was so thick that the air might have been gelatin. The patrons of the shop as well as our motley group watched the scene unfold with bated breath and silence. "Pick up the bottle and prove me right." The manager hesitated; he knew that if he picked up the superheated glass bottle he would suffer the same fate as I, but would not have access to the instantaneous healing that I had. "It would be in your best interests if you would pick up that bottle." Eric's voice was as sharp as knives. "I do not tolerate being kept waiting well."

The manager had no choice; he touched the bottle, keeping his fingers on the glass no longer than I, but crying out more fervently.

"Now that you see what your employee has made my lover endure, I trust that the situation will be dealt with in an appropriate manner."

"Indeed, it shall, sir." The manager excused himself, keeping his composure until he had left the public's sight. The collective audience let themselves breathe again, and went back to their business.

"Oh, to have a man like you!" said the old woman, bringing chuckles from those in earshot before heading on their way.

"Shall we begin the interrogation?" Eric's tone was once again light, as if the altercation he had just resolved had never taken place. He reached past me to move the offending hot bottle, steam once again rising from his cold skin. This time it was not funny. Eric did not drink from the bottle the entire time we sat there, I suppose out of respect for me. I wouldn't have minded if he did, but he must have found drinking from the bottle that caused me harm to be repugnant.

"All right." Patricia leaned forward, resting on her elbows. "First things first. It's clear that you are a vampire, but how old are you?"

"1,111 years old." Eric answered quickly and waited for the next question. Patricia was saving the big questions for last.

"Do you love Lotus? Like human love. Can you even feel like a human?"

"I do feel emotions as a human does, often more intensely than when I was human. And, yes, I do love Lotus."

This whole conversation was awkward for me, but I understood that it had to happen for Patricia to accept that Eric was no worse a partner because of his race than if her were human. Marci and I listened, but nursed our drinks so we would not have to contribute.

"Do you drink from Lotus?"

"Yes. I do not drink from her for sustenance; She allows me to take a small amount of blood from her during intercourse." Patricia's mouth dropped open, but she shut it quickly. Whatever she had been expecting, it had not been that. Eric frankness was a trait that I admired, but it did take some getting used to if weren't prepared for it. "I do share with her my blood, as well, to replenish what I have taken, so no alarm is necessary."

"But…if she takes your blood, that's drug use isn't it?"

"It's not, Patricia." I answered as Eric had pursed his lips to keep control over his laughter. Human ignorance often amused him greatly, and this was one of those times. "Drinking a small amount of blood from a vampire lover is a way to form a bond, and to heal. What constitutes vampire blood is a drug is the aging outside of a vampire's body; when it's put in vials for sale it goes bad, and creates a hallucinogenic substance. So, when I drink a bit of Eric's blood, it's not considered drug use."

"I did not know that." Marci said. "So, you two have a blood bond, I assume? How does that work? I suspect that it's not like a Dracula-type bond."

"No, I am not his servant." I chuckled at the thought of being Eric's servant. Imagining myself like his human employee, and too much glamoured, Ginger was one of the funniest things I had contemplated. "Eric is able to sense my emotions, and can always find me wherever I am. If I were ever in danger, and he were somewhere else, the bond would let him be aware of my fear, and he could come to me."

"You can feel her emotions, huh? What's Louts feeling now?" Patricia's question made Eric grin outright. I narrowed my eyes at him; he knew EXACTLY how I was feeling at this moment, especially toward him, and he would relish the opportunity to embarrass me. After all, teasing me was something he found pleasure in.

"Well-" He began, his eyes focusing somewhere entirely inappropriate. That grin of his paired with the way he was looking at me was not helping to calm my emotional situation.

"Eric."

"Lotus, min ljuva, I did promise transparency to assuage your friends concerns."

"That level of transparency is _not_ necessary."

"As you desire, älskara."

"Next question." I said, my tone leaving no room for discussion. Patricia moved on.

"What do you do for a living?"

"Among many other things, I own and run a bar in Shreveport."

"Which one?"

"Fangtasia."

"Wow. Nice." Marci clearly was impressed.

"What is included in these 'many other things?'" Patricia was not to be deterred. She had a serious distrust of vampires that I had not anticipated.

"I own many real estate properties, hold a position of influence in the vampire government of which I can tell you no more than what I have, and I have had some success with financial investments. I also hold stock in many of the companies that Americans find use of every day. If you are concerned with my ability to care for Lotus financially, I can assure you that there is nothing to be concerned about."

"What about exes? Any that we should know about?"

It was my turn for my jaw to go slack; I had never considered that Patricia would dig so deeply. I was through with this conversation now. No one but myself had the right to demand to know such private things about my boyfriend.

"Calm yourself, kär. I will answer the question."

"But it's-"

"I agreed to answer whatever question was asked of me. I will keep my word." Arguing with him was like talking to a brick wall. I sat back in my chair, crossing my legs in aggravation, and kept my mouth busy with my chai tea. "I have many exes, but only one that will be of any concern to anyone."

"Why only one?"

"She is the only one that I have had a serious relationship with, before Lotus, in the last century."

"I'd say that's a valid reason." Marci agreed. She was determined to play the peacemaker tonight, I could tell.

"Tell us about her. Please." Patricia nearly made a misstep by demanding something of Eric, not by him, but by me. I had had enough of this foolishness.

"Her name is Sookie Stackhouse, well, it was. She's Sookie Merlotte, now. She married a shape shifter about six years ago. As much as I wanted to, there were things I could not give her. She wanted to live the 'normal' life, planting a garden with her spouse, taking trips to the Gulf to soak up the sun, children. I am incapable of providing these things in the manner that she desired. She did love me, and I her, but for me to keep her for my own knowing that she would never be fulfilled in the way she craved…I could not do it. She let me go, and I accepted it, as it was in her best interests. That's all I want, you know, is for my woman to be happy. No man can be truly happy if his woman is not."

"You sound like you still have feelings for her."

"In a way, yes, I do. She had awoken something within me that I was sure that I lost. It is because of her that I am able to love Lotus as I do. Sookie will always be special to me, but Lotus is the one that has my heart."

He had told me this before, but it still warmed my heart to hear it, though it pained me, too. Eric was still hurting because of his failed relationship with his ex, mostly because he couldn't give to her what she needed to be happy. My vampire was used to being able to succeed in everything he did, and his inability to fulfill Sookie had left him suffering. I hated that he still felt pain from that past relationship, pain that I could only ease so much. I squeezed his big hand so that he knew that I was there for him. He did not squeeze back, but that was a safety issue. He did not squeeze back because it would be all too easy for him to crush my hand without him realizing he was; this was also the reason that vampires did not shake hands.

"That's so sad." Patricia said, lowering her stoic mask. "I'm sorry to have brought it up."

"It's all right. The friendship between you three is dynamic, and I cannot bend it. For you to be so concerned with Lotus's wellbeing is admirable; if I weren't so striking a creature, we may have never needed to have this discussion. You would have been able to sense my intentions."

"Perhaps so."

"Are we done here?" I asked. My ire was fading, and I definitely wanted to be away from this coffee shop in case the waitress came back.

"I think so." Patricia nodded, satisfied that Eric wasn't going to devour me, for now. Later on, something would reignite her fury, and we would have to do this all over again. It was her way.

"I'll handle the bill, ladies, if you would like to return to the stall with the hideous scarves. I am pretty certain that things may become a little heated between myself and the manager, and I don't think anyone needs to see that."

"Hear, hear!" Marci said, sliding her arm through Patricia's, hoisting her up.

"Be careful." I whispered into Eric's ear as he leaned down to hug me after I stood and got my handbag situated. I knew what he planned to do, and I can't say that I did blame him. He hadn't touched his blood substitute, after all.

"I am always careful." He released me and waited until we were outside of the little patio fence before he spoke again. "Oh, min kärlek, your bag is open."

I reached around to close it, shocked that I had not closed it as was my careful custom, to find that the reason that the zipper was undone was because my sneaky boyfriend had slipped a rather excessive wad of bills in the inner side pocket. I lifted my head to find him and tell him that he would be taking it back, but he was nowhere to be found.

I sighed, smirking at little at his cleverness. He knew fully well that I would not have accepted it had he not snuck the money into my bag, and I knew that he would deny ownership of said cash from here on out. When it came to money, I never won.

No one could say that Eric did not try to keep his woman in a smile.


	2. Chapter 2

**2**

We had moved on to scented candles from the hideous scarves when Eric found us. He didn't immediately join us, though he stayed close enough to keep us in eyesight, ever the vampire protector. If it weren't for the telephone held to his ear, he wouldn't have delayed his arrival.

"Oh no, I hope that's not work." I said. Marci and Patricia gave Eric the once over.

"Not bar work, but vampire government work, right?" Marci clarified, taking a whiff of a candle before making a face and putting it down.

"Yeah. If they tell him to, he'll have to go." I really did not want him to have to go. It wasn't often that he and I got to be together anywhere other than in Shreveport. I liked Shreveport, but it was nice to be somewhere new.

"You are overly partial to mint fragrances." Eric's voice said from directly behind me. I jumped a little, as I often did since he moved so quietly. "I suspect that every room in our house will be mint scented at some point."

I was about to reply coyly when my brain processed what he said.

"'Our house?'" I tried to keep my heart from racing in excitement, since I could have misinterpreted what he said. I did not succeed in that feat, nor could I suppress the smile that accompanied it.

"We got the house, älskling." His face broke into a smile too, that goofy one that he only wore when he was truly happy.

I wanted to say something memorable and sweet, but I could only squeal and jump into his massive arms, wrapping my arms around his neck in the tightest hug my small five foot six human body could manage.

"Something good's going on here." Marci said to Patricia, who agreed.

I was still lightheaded with giddiness when Eric put me down again. I could have stayed in his embrace forever, but I knew that later I would get to experience more of his arms around me than I could handle at once.

"Show me what you've found." he said, leaning in toward the candle displays. Marci and Patricia shrugged and went back to candle sniffing; they'd have to wait to find out the news. If Patricia's reception of Eric had been warmer, I probably would have blurted out the great news right then, but I didn't feel like dealing with Patricia's negativity when I was so overjoyed. I offered the candles with scents that I preferred to him to test, most of which he did like, but the others he hated. "I told you that I would get it for you."

"I never doubted you, Jarl Eric." Using his former human title here was dangerous. Dangerous for me, anyway. Calling Eric by his title never, ever failed in getting the reaction that I intended. As expected, a low growl made it's way up from Eric's chest.

"I will take you right now, if you do not behave yourself, Lotus. I swear it." His whispered words in my ear only heightened the presence of the downstairs tickle I had been fighting since I laid eyes on him. "Du testar mig med din doft, och jag kan inte bära mycket mer, Lotus."

"Here, smell this then." I proffered an opened candle to him and after a long glare full of desire, he took a sniff of the candle's scent.

Instantly, his demeanor changed. His fiery arousal was put out and he took the candle from my hands so quickly I had no idea that he had done it.

"Are you all right?" I asked him. He was sniffing the candle again, much deeper this time.

"It smells like… home." he said. His voice was strange, somewhat far away. I had seen him like this only a few times before, when he spoke about his childhood in Viking Sweden. It was not often he spoke of this portion of his past, but when he did, he always mentioned the smell of home that he had never been able to replicate. He suspected that the industrial revolution had eradicated the pure scent that he had experienced for good.

"What?" I was as shocked as he, since I truly believed that there was no way that somehow the ancient scent of unspoiled Sweden could ever be duplicated in the modern world.

"I can smell the sea, and the sand at the bottom of the cliffs. The scent of the trees in the air, the threat of snow. It's… amazing. I have searched over a thousand years for this scent, and you have found it for me." Bloody tears actually began to well up in his eyes before he capped the lid of the candle back on and regained control of himself. He stared at the candle's label for a moment before laughing out loud, a seldom heard sound from him. He turned the label to face me. It read 'Viking Rain.'

"Now that's a freaky coincidence."

"I agree."

I purchased several of the candles right then, leaving behind the mint scented ones that I so liked. Money wasn't the reason; I wanted to make sure that there were no conflicting scents wafting up from the bag as we continued wandering around tonight. He would never admit it, but he would be inhaling that scent all night long.

Smiling to myself because I had a secret plan, I pocketed the candle company's card. When Eric went to ground for the day, I was going to be busy.

"Oh my god," Patricia said as we were walking about. She had ducked away as we ladies stopped for a bathroom break. "The hotel just called me to say that they overbooked; now, Marci and I are out of a hotel room for the rest of the week!"

After a few minutes of dramatic banter between myself and my friends, Eric spoke.

"I am certain that I can make arrangements at the hotel where Lotus and I are staying, if you wouldn't mind staying at a hotel that caters to vampires."

"That would be wonderful, thank you." Marci replied, talking directly over Patricia. At least Marci knew that at this time of year finding a quality hotel would be impossible. Although vampire hotels were aimed at accommodating vampires, their accommodations for humans weren't exactly second rate. "We would really appreciate it."

"Yes, thank you very much." added Patricia. I didn't know what her problem with vampires was, but she was about it get over it very quickly.

"Excuse me just one moment, and I'll resolve this situation immediately." We browsed the stalls as Eric trailed along, making arrangements. Though he did not notice, we three were listening as intently as we could without being conspicuous; we were dying to know how he would pull this off. "This is Sheriff Eric Northman. I require a double suite for the rest of this week in addition to my previous booking, preferably adjacent to my current suite. Yes, I'll hold."

"Sheriff?" Patricia asked me. I shrugged.

"It's his job title within the vampire government. There's a whole systemic hierarchy within it, but I don't know much more than the chain of command. But I'm sworn to secrecy. Literally."

"Yes. I will accept that. Thank you." We quickly busied ourselves as he hung up the phone and rejoined us. "It's done. The concierge couldn't manage to make an adjacent suite available, but our rooms are on the same floor. You three will be close, and there will be nothing to fear, Patricia." Patricia looked surprised that Eric had picked up on her fear. Of course, she hadn't considered that Eric could smell her fear in addition to being perceptive enough to read it from her facial expressions. "The hotel is guarded day and night, and no vampire will harm you. If you would like, I can loan you a piece of my clothing so my scent will be on you; no vampire will so much as approach you if you have my scent on you."

"Ah, okay. I'd feel more comfortable that way. Thanks, Eric."

"You're welcome." A sudden, frightening crack of a lightening strike crossed the sky above us lighting the street up like midday. "Looks like I booked that room just in time. I'd say we have-" he paused to sniff the air "-roughly ten minutes before the downpour."

"Ack! Let's book it!" I cried. "The hotel's at least fifteen minutes away by foot!"

"Give me the bags, ladies." Eric said, managing the simultaneous barrage of shopping bags with ease.

We took off myself in the lead, running like we were being pursued by the police. It was one of the most fun things we had done since becoming adults, minus the spring break trip to Puerto Rico in freshman year of college. We dodged the other people in the street like teenagers who had had a little too much to drink, squealing and laughing all the way. Eric kept up with us easily, hardly walking faster than normal, thanks to the combination of his extra long legs and his vampiric ability to move much more quickly than humans. With two blocks to go to the hotel, the drizzle started falling down on us, spurring us faster onward.

The hotel loomed over the other building in the commercial district, the lights of the at least twelve story building shining like a football stadium on a Friday night. It was hard to count stories when running so quickly. The building's edifice was hard to distinguish with human eyes in the dark of the night, but to me it seemed to be designed to match the old French Creole architecture of the city. Hotel Laveau was imposing, but welcoming, partly because of the Southern style veranda that stretched across the entire front of the building and extended upward, providing the rooms on the front of the building with balconies made private by the wonderful planters and ferns along with the latticework between balconies.

Patricia, Marci and I had just made our loud entrance onto the veranda when the bottom fell out of the sky. Within seconds, the rain was so heavy that the streetlamps lining the sidewalks were difficult to make out.

"It's about time you three got here."

We turned around to see Eric sitting about ten feet down from us in a traditional Southern rocking chair, our bags nowhere to be seen.

"Very funny, Speedy Gonzalez."

Eric stood and offered me his arm, and lead the way inside. If Eric hadn't have been leading me, I would have stopped in my tracks when I saw the lobby. The lobby was massive, and the epitome of Southern decadence. Even Scarlett O'Hara would have been impressed with this place's décor. To add to the splendor, the black clad porters and concierges bowed whenever we came near, always greeting Eric in the same way: "Good evening, Mr. Northman." I didn't know how they knew him by sight, but it certainly made me feel special to be on the arm of an important man; the concierges certainly did not bow and call the other vampire guests by name.

Eric showed us around the ground floor. There was the reception desk -where, Eric assured us, the concierges would bend head over heels to do our requests- and the common seating areas were just to the right of the reception area. Past the reception desk to the left was the hotel restaurant which catered to both the culinary wishes of vampire and human alike. Eric made sure to warn us that should we decide to dine in the restaurant, we should be aware that the vampire menu was exotic, to say the least. Those of us with weak stomachs were much better suited to room service or going out elsewhere. There was also a large reception hall containing a wide, empty, shining wooden dance floor and a fine grand piano, with plenty of room for a small orchestra accompaniment. The elevator bay was situated behind the reception desk, and was the most divine waiting area of this manner than I had ever encountered. The elevator door shone like polished silver -though in a vampire hotel they were most certainly not silver- as did the marble floors. Immaculate antique sofas were placed around in conversational groupings in the vast area between the bays. I wondered how long people had to wait for elevators to need such accommodations while they waited, then I realized that there was little need for such excess; it was the desire for grandeur that were the reason for the conversation sets here.

Even the interior of the elevator was designed to the nines.

"Here we are." Eric said. The elevator had stopped on the top floor, amusingly numbered thirteen. Clearly, only the crème de la crème were accommodated up here. The décor in the hall alone surely cost more than the median American home price. "Lotus and I are in room three, and Marci and Patricia are in room six." He indicated both rooms. Room three was in the middle of the hall on the left side of the corridor opposite the elevator bay, and room six was at the end of the corridor on the opposite of the hall.

"Eric, I hate to be a bother, but would you check the room? I'm sure that Patricia would feel much better if she knew the room were secure."

"It would be my pleasure."

Eric took his time checking the room, obviously moving at a human pace. I knew that he could simply sniff to know that the room was empty, but being the gentleman that I knew he was, he would check all the places that an assailant- human or vampire- could hide.

"I appreciate that, Marci." Patricia said. "I know I'm being a pain, guys, and I don't mean to be rude, or anti-vampire, at all, but it's hard for me to just overcome a fear I've had for years in a few hours."

"We understand." I told her, glad that she was opening up so that I could figure out what was going on in her head. "I wish you would have confided your fear in us earlier, so we could have helped you. If I had known, I wouldn't have sprung Eric on you without preparing you."

"I know you wouldn't have, just like I know that you two would have been more than willing to help me not be afraid, but it's just so frowned upon to be afraid of vampires. I didn't want any one to think I hated vampires, because I don't. I'm just afraid."

"We'll help you." Marci said. "And Eric will, too, I'm sure. He's not entirely scary, now, is he?"

"He's pretty scary." Patricia admitted. "Absolutely the most gorgeous specimen of man I have ever seen, but scary."

"Amen to the sexy!" Marci threw her hand up like she was the preacher of the Church of Man Candy.

"Eric's a powerful guy with a lot of influence, so I get that he's scary." I told Patricia. "One time, one of his employees, or underlings, whatever they're called, defied him, and I swear, the secret service would have tucked their tails and ran after Eric finished with him. I don't know how the situation ended, because Pam suggested that I leave for a bit, but just the authority in the way Eric spoke to that man made me shudder."

"Who's Pam?"

"Pam is Eric's progeny." The explanation was met with blank stares. "Eric made Pam a vampire- he is her Maker and she is his Progeny. Their relationship is a little hard to understand; sometimes Pam is like a daughter to him, other times she's a friend, and other times she's merely an employee."

"Isn't that difficult? I imagine that she spends a lot of time with him." Marci was always perceptive.

"Not really. At first, I didn't know how to handle it because I didn't understand it. After spending some time with Pam, and subsequently Pam and Eric, I realized that I have nothing to worry about. If anything, Pam's an ally. She's possibly more loyal to Eric than I am."

"Are they together all the time? Like, do they live together?"

"Oh, no. Years and years ago they lived together when Pam was getting the hang of being a vampire, but once she struck out on her own, she hasn't lived with him since. When Eric started up Fangtasia, he called up Pam to come help him. So, they co-own and run Fangtasia. They live in separate houses in the same neighborhood."

"Do Pam and you get along well?"

"Most days. She's more high maintenance than we are -I think I recall her mentioning that she was from a pretty affluent family when she was human, so that could be why- and we don't have that much in common, her being a vampire and all. I do like talking to her, when we have something to talk about. Usually Eric."

"How in the world did you even meet him?" Patricia seemed to have been sitting on this question all day. She must have thought it was too much to ask, since she had already asked some very personal questions.

"Through work. Pam was trying to convince Eric to redecorate the bar, and he just wasn't that into it. I got the job since no one else in the office wanted to even so much as be associated with the vampire bar, and since I'm the most eclectic designer there anyway, I was excited to have the job. It took me a couple of weeks to realize that Eric had me redesigning mock-ups not because he didn't like what I had come up with, but because he was trying to get my attention."

"Aww, that's sweet." Eric's subtleties were a tick in his favor with her.

"The room's all clear." His voice made us jump like we were guilty. We hadn't been talking about anything that we should be feeling guilty about, yet here we were. "What have you three found to amuse you?"

"Oh, nothing of importance."

"Of course not." Eric left it at that, but I had the fleeting suspicion that he had eavesdropping with his vampire hearing. "Ladies, your room isn't on the balcony side, so there's only the one door in and out. There's no way anyone could gain entrance without your knowledge. In the event that something were to happen, a quick call to our room will have me at your service."

"Thanks again, Eric. I really appreciate it." Patricia seemed much more relieved to know that the room had the vampire safety seal of approval.

"You're welcome." Eric half turned, before stopping mid motion. "I nearly forgot; take this- I wear it often, so it's saturated with my scent. You only need to carry it on your person for a vampire to recognize it."

Patricia accepted the necklace that Eric extended to her. If she had wanted something with Eric's scent on it, she got the cream of the crop. I knew the history of the pendant that he wore nearly everyday.

Little did Patricia know, she was holding an authentic Viking hand-hewn whale bone pendant worth more than many treasures housed in the Smithsonian.

I did not tell her how careful to be with said pendant, because it wasn't my place to do so. The fact that Eric would loan it to Patricia was a great show of trust, not necessarily in her, but in my choice of friends.

We parted to head to our separate rooms where our luggage had already been brought up from the cars that the concierges had earlier retrieved from their parking spaces downtown. I doubted such treatment was available to every guest at the hotel.

"Wow." I was floored by the quality of the suite. Not only was it the fanciest hotel room I had ever stepped foot in throughout my entire life, it was the fanciest hotel room that I had ever seen; the room looked like something in one of the upscale Trump Towers in New York. Not that I'd know from experience- I had an assignment in design school in which I had to replicate the opulent style of the Towers for a nominal sum. I had done very well on the project, but if I had had _this _hotel room as the model, I don't know if I would have succeeded in getting the excellent grade that I had.

"You'll get used it to, kär." Eric told me, shutting and locking the door behind us. I wandered through the suite- a large open living area that was bigger than the living room and dining room of my current house connected to a small kitchenette (but still larger than my full sized kitchen at home) next to a dining area large enough for a full sized table that could seat six with room to spare. Beyond the dining area were the French doors that opened up onto the balcony, which was wide enough to fit another full sized dining set and a conversation set. Opposite the living area were two doors, one leading to the half bath and the other opening up into the bedroom. The bedroom was exquisite; the room was furnished in traditional Southern style made luxurious by the more modern color scheme of grey, black and white. The bed was an oversized king, which was a must for Eric, thanks to his excessive stature. The theme of opulence continued into this room, which boasted a seating area, a gas fireplace, a massive walk-in closet, and a five piece bathroom larger than the both the bedrooms in my house. I was sure that the tub alone was about as big as the whole interior of my car. "I will always have the best that I can afford, and I can afford anything."

"I don't know that I could ever get used to this kind of luxury, much less the price tag." All the finery was becoming overwhelming. I had known from the first time that I had met Eric that price was not an issue for him, and that he wouldn't settle for mediocre. As low maintenance as I was, I hadn't realized just of what 'high maintenance' really consisted.

"You'll have to, otherwise you'll never be able to relax in our new house."

The fire lit behind his eyes and I knew for what I was in store. I just happened to be standing in the room that he had been imagining me in all night, too.

"Our new house." I tried the words out on my tongue. They were as sweet as they sounded in my head, and Eric thought so too, if the growl of arousal that grumbled in his throat were any indication. I found myself pinned to the bed before I could blink, Eric's fangs out, his eyes burning into mine.

"I can't wait to have you in every room of our house." His body pressed against mine, the familiar weight of it kicking my arousal into high gear. I could feel every curve of his muscular form on me as if our clothing weren't there. My body remembered his, and cried out for it.

"Have me now." The words came out as little more than a whisper from somewhere back in my throat. I knew that he understood, because I could feel his phallus tense in anticipation. There was no mistaking Eric's arousal; the sight of the size of it alone was enough to make a woman's loins ache. Having it pressing against my mons pubis was enough to make me wriggle anticipatorily.

"Not now." He answered before taking my mouth with his. His large hands released my wrists to wind around the back of my head, as was his usual custom. I knew he would do it, because he always did, but that did not make the action any less appreciated. Eric was a very, very good kisser; he brought heat to places nowhere near the mouth with just the movements of his tongue.

I was more than ready to release Eric of his clothing; with my hands free I was able to do just that, running my hands under his shirt, dragging them across the chiseled form of his abdomen and stomach up to his chest, where they rested a short time while Eric moved his attention from my lips to my neck.

He played teasingly with the extra-sensitive spot at the base of my throat, nearly sending me into a frenzy. When I couldn't take the sensation any more I pushed his chest with all of my might, which wasn't much compared relative to the strength of my partner. Distracted because of his previous task, he was moved backward a few feet, which afforded me the chance to take control.

"Take off your shirt. Now." I told him, meeting his eyes. He relished the lust in my expression I could tell, and did as I commanded. I busied myself with the buckle of his belt as he did, bringing another growl from his throat. Eric seized the opportunity to slip my shirt off my shoulders, which didn't seem to go the way he wanted it to. The sound of him ripping my shirt elevated my desire, and I did not hesitate to take his member in my mouth the moment I freed it from his pants.

"Mina gudar…"

The sensation of his hands against the back of my head and the feel of his massive erection sliding in and out of my mouth was sublime. I enjoyed this task greatly, as Eric could clearly tell. Even though his erection was too large for me to take in fully, even with my minimal gag reflex, I still managed to make Eric go weak in the knees. For such a powerful man to be so much at my mercy was a stimulating awareness.

"Tillräckligt!" No sooner had the word come from his mouth was I literally picked up and thrown onto the center of the bed. Eric followed me there faster than I could track with my eyes, positioning me how he wanted me, one of my legs pushed up against my chest as I lay on my back. He liked to look at me when we copulated, a habit that made me feel like a real sex kitten. "Jag ska knulla dig tills du skriker för mig."

I wasn't exactly fluent in Eric's native language of Swedish, but I knew enough to understand that he would certainly make this night memorable. He often lapsed into Swedish when we made love, but not usually to this extent. Eric had plans for tonight I hadn't anticipated.

His mouth was on mine again, his body pressing mine down into the bedclothes. He held my leg in position with his chest, and gripped the other tightly around the thigh. I fell for the diversionary tactic of his other hand gripping the back of my skull, focusing on the tightening of his hand and the movements of his tongue, while he positioned himself for what I had been waiting.

Something between a moan and a shout escaped my throat as he moved into me in one thrust; the stretch he gave me when he entered was so awesome that I often climaxed just by him entering me. Tonight was no exception.

"Det är inte nog, älskara." Eric said into my ear as he made his way to my throat. "Skrik för mig."

His rhythmic movements in and out of me where enough to send me into sensory overload, but coupled with the press of his lips, the wetness of his tongue and the scrape of his fangs on my neck made me question whether my heart could take much more. A swift change of position put my back to his front, both of us on our knees. My hands gripped the comforter alongside one of Eric's hands, the other lodged around the front of my throat. Each thrust made the burning ache increase within me, causing me to moan in a manner quite inconsistent with my usual quiet delight. Eric released my throat to cup his hand over my pubis, moving his fingers along my clitoris in time with his pushes and pulls. I bit my lower lip, drawing blood as I came, drenching both of our legs and the linens. My gratification spurred Eric's efforts; he flipped me over and plowed into me, lifting my hips up to his as he worked. The scent of my blood added to his fervor.

He took my mouth again, the taste of my blood mixing with the osculation of our tongues. A consistent low cry of pleasure escaped me upon each thrust, though I tried to keep quiet.

"Det var allt, skriker för mig, Lotus." He uttered between each kiss. "Låt mig höra det."

My cries became louder as Eric's thrusts became harder and faster. I nearly climaxed again, but stopped myself when I felt that I would scream. I clamped my hands over my mouth, but each cry came anyway, barely muffled by my palms.

"Let me hear it, Lotus. I want to hear it." Eric's voice was ragged as he said it, accented thickly with Swedish pronunciation. He wouldn't let up until I gave him what he wanted.

"Someone- will- hear." I managed to utter through my moans.

"Let them hear. I want you to let them know how much I love you." Whether I tried to stop it or not, Eric was bringing me to climax once again, and this time there would be no holding back. "Scream for me, älskara."

Almost instantly he got what he wanted; the orgasm rocked my body like an earthquake, shaking loose whatever sense of decency I had. A wordless scream rose from me, lasting several seconds into the orgasm's swell. I drenched us again, and Eric clutched me to him, pounding me relentlessly as his own climax came. He cried out something indiscernible in Swedish before burying his fangs into the sensitive spot in my neck.

Another cry leapt from my throat as the rush of blood burst from my body to his, drawing out my pleasure with each pull on the wound.

After what seemed an eternity, Eric released my neck, and with it, our apogee.

Eric licked my throat one last time, his saliva beginning its work to heal the wound he caused, before collapsing beside me on the bed.

"You are magnificent." Eric spoke first after the initial cool down period.

"I really need to learn more Swedish." I replied. He laughed, that genuine laugh that he only laughed when we were in private.

"There is nothing about you that needs perfecting, Lotus. You are a masterpiece already." I kissed him for his comment, having no words eloquent enough to thank him for his appreciation of me. "Don't kiss me like that, or I'll have to make you scream again."

"Oh, Eric. I'm so embarrassed! Why did you make me do that? What if someone heard me? What if Marci and Patricia heard me?"

"They would be privileged to hear the wonderful sounds you make when I'm making love to you. Not that they did, however. These rooms are completely and totally soundproof."

I then hit him with the nearest throw pillow.

"Thanks for telling me earlier."

"I wanted you to experience that passion, kär. The encounter wouldn't have been nearly as hot if you felt entirely comfortable, would it have?"

"Maybe not." I didn't want to directly admit that Eric was right, but he knew that was what I meant, perhaps because I stuck my tongue out at him.

"I'm going to marry you one day, Lotus, if that's what you desire when you are ready." His sudden confession caught me off guard. Eric did not confide many emotions in anyone, not even myself, or his century old progeny, Pam. It was part of his personality, this non-disclosure. Hearing him confide such a deep emotion in me made my heart melt. "Until the time when you are ready, I would very much like it if you would let me call you Mine."

I didn't know everything there was to know about the way the vampire world ran, but I did know that a vampire asking you to belong to them was a big deal. No other vampire could so much as touch you without offending the vampire who you belonged to, in addition to do so was breaking vampire law. This commitment was not one that a vampire entered into lightly; it was tantamount to human engagement without all the ceremony and physical ring flaunting.

Again, there were no words for what I wanted to say. I positioned myself on top of Eric, stretching myself out along his chest, placing my breathing chest on his still one. I pressed my lips not to his lips as he was expecting, instead I skimmed down his long neck heading to his chest. He didn't move as he waited, half sitting up to watch me caress his chest with my mouth. I concentrated my efforts above where his still heart lay, looking up at him when he was sufficiently aroused. His blue eyes bored into my caramel colored ones as I spoke.

"Eric Northman, I have been yours for years. My heart only beats to love you."

"I swear to you, Lotus Smithson, that I will give you everything of which you have ever dreamed. I cannot give you the sun, as much as I crave to, but anything else you desire I will make happen. If you desire children of me, I will devise the technology myself to make it happen. I swear this to you."

"Oh, Eric." I laid my head on his chest, embracing him in the best way that I could in our limited position. "All I need is you."

We truly made love then, unlike we ever had before. Such gentleness and care never had I experienced with him, or any of the limited number of men which with I had been involved. This was the true purpose of intimacy.

Although I usually tried to stay awake as long as I could to be with Eric as long as possible, the events of the day and evening had exhausted me.

"One day, min dyrbara, you will want children." I thought I heard him say, though I was probably dreaming as I slipped away into slumber. "When that day comes, I will find a way to father them. I will not fail you."


	3. Chapter 3

**3**

"I wonder what Eric is up to tonight." I mused out loud as Marci, Patricia and I rode up in the elevator after our early dinner. Eric had requested that the three of us come back up to the hotel room at eight, but would not supply any more information than that. We were all three in high spirits thanks to the wonderful dinner in the upscale restaurant we found in town- we declined to try the hotel restaurant thanks to Eric's forewarning of exotic vampire cuisine- and because I had announced to my friends that Eric and I were moving in together in addition to being engaged by vampire standards.

Both Marci and Patricia were thrilled for me, though Patricia still held reservations about the whole situation, which she now openly shared with me. She still was not comfortable with Eric being a vampire, but she did like him, and thought that our personalities meshed well.

I knew Eric was up to something big when I saw the tall blond woman dressed in clothing that would grace the storefront window at Saks Fifth Avenue standing outside our hotel room door.

"Pam!" I was genuinely glad to see Eric's progeny, as I often was, until one of us annoyed the other. "I'm glad to see you."

"The same." She replied, ever loquacious.

I introduced my companions to Pam, and she to them. As usual, Pam was less than friendly, though perfectly polite.

"What brings you all the way to New Orleans?" I asked her as I fished the key card to my room out of my purse, made more difficult by the numerous shopping bags I had accrued getting in the way.

"The same man that brought you."

"Eric sent for you?"

"Yes. I haven't the faintest idea why, though. A long time ago, I learned it was easier to obey than ask questions; so I did as I was told and brought Eric's lawyer and myself down here, pronto."

"Oh, god; what the hell is he up to?" At last I located the key card and put it in the lock. Eric was definitely up to something major if both Pam and his lawyer were involved. What could he want with those two, in addition to myself and my two best friends? "Eric, we're here!" I called out as I opened the door into the lobby of our suite.

"And we thought our suite was fancy." Marci said to Patricia as they followed me in. Patricia agreed with a quick nod of her head, but didn't comment. She seemed to be clenching her mouth shut so it wouldn't fall open.

"I'm in here, älskara." He was using his business-y authoritative voice. It didn't do anything to alleviate the growing sense of foreboding that was growing in my chest. He was sitting at the head of the dining table, his lawyer seated beside him, papers neatly arranged in front of him. "Please, come sit, ladies."

We complied, my friends and I depositing our purchases on the closest sofa. There was a momentary bit of awkwardness when Pam took the remaining seat beside Eric. He glared at her with a look so sharp it could slice metal in half without protest.

"Problem, Eric?" Pam said, nonplussed by the look her Maker was giving her, responding with a sassy lift of her left eyebrow.

"Chose a different seat, Pam."

"You want me to what?"

"Move your ass, Pam, or stand. Your choice."

"My, aren't we testy this morning." Pam retorted, but did as she was commanded. She glared at me with equal intensity as Eric had stared at her when Eric patted the seat Pam had just vacated and said to me, "Sit down with me, kära."

No one said a word as we took our seats, except Pam, who opted to stand a few feet behind Eric between him and the lawyer. Patricia looked at me with a quizzical look, while Marci smirked smugly. Eric's snub of Pam was not lost on her, and she found the situation to be quite humorous.

"We are ready to proceed." Eric told the lawyer, who pulled one stack of papers toward him.

"According to Mr. Northman's wishes, there are now two beneficiaries to his estate, should he meet the True Death- his progeny, Pamela Swynford de Beaufort, and his fiancée, Lotus Arianne Smithson. Should Mr. Northman meet the True Death, all his liquid assets and physical assets will be split evenly in half, along with all investments, personal items and real estate and subsequent income resulting from sale or rental income of said real estate. Each beneficiary stands to inherit 300 million dollars as of the creation of this document."

My two friends and I surely wore identical expressions of shock.

"Eric, this isn't necessary. I don't need this."

"I want to make sure that you are provided for, should something happen to me."

"I don't know that I want this, Eric. This is what you have earned, not what I have earned."

"Let's discuss it later, älskare, and you will understand why I want this for you."

"Fiancée, Eric? Are you out of your mind?" Pam's question brought all eyes, except the lawyer's- who knew better than to get more involved than his job entailed- around to her. "After what happened with Sookie? You're going to put yourself through that pain again?"

"It is my choice, Pam. I will hear no more against it from you."

"It's insanity, Eric! Do you really want to suffer again when she wants to bear children and you cannot give them to her?"

The lawyer removed himself from the table and went to stand near the suite's lobby when Eric leapt out of his seat and pinned Pam to the wall behind where the lawyer had been seated.

"Whether I choose to love a human or a vampire is not your concern. Should my fiancée decide that she wants children of me, I shall move earth and sea to find a way to give her my children. If you value your tongue, Pam, I will hear no more from you on the subject of my fiancée unless I seek your counsel."

She broke eye contact with Eric after a long minute that seemed to last an hour. Pam put her fangs away and turned her head, crossing her arms across her chest when Eric released her. Eric bent to pick up his chair that he upended when Pam spoke again.

"I was just trying to-"

"As your Maker, I command you to shut the fuck up." With Eric's words, Pam's mouth closed. If looks could kill, Pam and I would both have inherited 300 million dollars a piece right then.

When Eric was seated again, and his fangs were put away, he invited the lawyer to reclaim his seat.

"I apologize." Eric said, offering no more of an apology than that. The lawyer nodded and resorted the papers that the sudden movement of air caused by Eric's super speed attack had upset.

"Shall we skip ahead to the signing, Mr. Northman?" the lawyer suggested.

"Yes."

"The Last Will and Testament of Mr. Northman will be unbreakable and upheld by law with the signatures of two witnesses, neither of which can be the beneficiaries of the estate." He turned his attention to Patricia and Marci. "As the secondary beneficiary's lifelong friends, do you agree to sign providing you are under no duress and of competent minds?"

"I'm sane and free willed, so I'll sign." Marci said. She truly seemed excited to sign as a witness. Marci had always been happy for others when good fortune came their way, and apparently my good fortune was of no exception. The lawyer extended a pen and the last copy of the will to Marci and she scrawled her name.

"All right, I'll sign, too." Patricia had always been one to follow the crowd, so that is what she did.

"Very well. On to the next document, then." Pam cast another vicious glare at the side of Eric's head, but as she was bound by her Maker's wishes to 'shut the fuck up,' she was unable to voice whatever was going through her mind. He paid her no mind, and took one of my hands in his in plain sight on the tabletop, against his usual strict professional manner in these type of situations. "To take possession of the house, Miss Smithson and yourself need to sign, along with two witnesses. Also, I need you, Mr. Northman, to sign the Fund Transfer document, and the first year's property taxes are due at this time."

"Certainly." Eric signed the contract, the Fund Transfer document, and wrote and signed a check faster than the lawyer could pass me a pen. "Here you are, Lotus, älskling. With your signature, the house is ours."

"You don't ever hesitate to get things done, do you, dear?" I chuckled as I signed the contract. Never had I known him to tread water on anything.

"No, I do not." That sly grin of his made an appearance then, and I am pretty certain that Marci found it hard not to drool. I could hardly blame her, as Eric was by far the most handsome man any of us had ever seen, much less dated.

"Now, the witnesses must sign." The lawyer passed the paper to Marci and Patricia in turn until the signing was done. He checked the contract, will and other papers over once more before locking them away in his briefcase. "Congratulations, Mr. Northman, Miss Smithson. You are now the owners of a paid-in-full home."

I let Eric handle the thanks and small talk with the lawyer while I sat at the table and absorbed the situation. In the confines of thirty minutes, Eric had made me a beneficiary of his estate and purchased our house in full, though I had wanted to contribute to the monthly mortgage. Once again, Eric had his way when it came to money.

Pam glared at Eric as he rejoined us in the dining room, and stalked out of the room without so much as a good day. In her defense, Eric hadn't repealed his command yet, so she couldn't physically bid anyone goodbye.

"Oh, and Pam," Eric called over his shoulder to his irate progeny, "Your little stunt has cost you six months worth of clothing allowance. Tell me what you think of that." His command gave her back her ability to speak, wittingly phrased so he wouldn't seem to be a jerk who talked to is progeny too much like a child.

"I think you are being unfair in addition to being an idiot."

"That's my girl. Get back to work."

"Gladly. Enjoy your _vacation_. Don't get sunburned." Pam's tone told Eric exactly where he could stick his vacation. Eric laughed out loud at her sardonic suggestion that he spend some time in the sun, much to Marci's delight. She certainly approved of my new fiancé, maybe to the point of having a slight infatuation with him.

Her attitude towards him was pretty flattering, truthfully.

"Congratulations on your house, you two!" Marci said. "You didn't tell us when you were moving in together, Lotus, that you were buying a house."

"Tell us about it! We can't wait to help you decorate, not that you need it, with your design skills and all. But what are friends for, huh?" The thought of a new house excited Patricia. She was a real estate agent, and for good reason. Something about homes and people moving in them tickled her fancy. This quality made her very successful in the home sale business.

"Which of these are yours?" Eric asked and I pointed out the bags that were mine. He poked through my purchases absentmindedly, his mind clearly focused internally, while I described the five bedroom, eight bathroom, ten thousand square foot Tuscan style lakefront home to my friends ("That's not a house-that's a mansion!" cried Patricia.). I was detailing the bidding war that Eric had been engaged in when his eyes widened. He had clearly found the stash of new lingerie that I had purchased. I couldn't tell what item he admired so much, but whatever it was he was more than absentmindedly picturing me in it.

There came a knock at the door, and a concierge's voice called out.

"Room service, Mr. Northman."

"Oh, good." Eric looked at the item a moment longer before placing it back in the bag to answer the door. We ladies had moved onto engagement talk when Eric rejoined us from the kitchen, where he had deposited the decanter that concierge had brought. He held a large wine glass filled half full with a liquid that certainly was not red wine.

"What does blood taste like to you, if you don't mind my asking?" Patricia asked Eric when he had finished taking an overlong draught.

He thought for a minute, licking his lips passively.

"Alive. It doesn't have a flavor so much, though it does have a taste depending on the diet of the donor. Blood is alive, and to maintain life, a vampire eats what is alive. Human food is dead, and is as disgusting to us as… a corpse would be to you. I cannot describe it better."

"Does the synthetic stuff taste worse than the real deal?" Marci added.

"Most definitely. There are a few brands, the most expensive varieties, of all synthetic blood that are a little more than bearable. Of course, there are the mixed varieties as well- synthetic and human blood combined- and they're all right. There's also the Royalty brand, which specializes in cruelty free, donated human blood- such as this right here- that offer different flavors."

"Which flavor is that, dear? Chocolate again?"

"No, orange. I have never encountered this flavor before, so I thought I'd try it. Oranges were not available in Sweden when I was human, though I had heard the seamen speak of them upon occasion. It's quite tasty; I wish I could have tried one when I was alive."

"And you're content with a bottled diet?" Patricia was warming up to Eric, but not so much to his appetite.

"Hardly. I do my best to mainstream, but I am not infallible. I do sometimes falter. The AVL would fine me for saying so, I am sure, but I see no need to lie to either of you."

"Faltering is understandable. We'd do it, for sure, if we had to change our natural diet for something far less appetizing." I loved Marci's perceptiveness. "Do you kill when you slide off the bandwagon?"

"Oh, no. I haven't killed a meal in centuries." He took another long sip. "I'm sorry. I realize that sounded insensitive. Humans are not simply meals; however, it is easier to perceive one's victim a meal rather than a victim. I might be dead, but I still retain a few morals."

"Well, all right then." Patricia said, satisfied with Eric's view of things. "What are we getting up to tonight?"

"I have a suggestion." Eric said, placing his glass down on the coffee table. "Let's go on a ghost tour."

"What in the world would possess you to want to do that?" I asked, completely and utterly confused by his suggestion. He was a vampire; he knew that ghosts were real, and usually couldn't give a give a darn either.

"It's going to sound cruel, and I suppose in a way it is, but I like to scare people sometimes." He answered, actually looking a little embarrassed. "Being a vampire, I can see ghosts as easily as I can see you, kära. It makes it all too easy for me to discern when humans are lying about what they see and sense, and when humans are that keyed up, its so easy to startle them. I will confess to sometimes glamouring someone and adding to the experience." It was Marci's turn to be shocked at Eric's words. "I know, it's not an attractive trait, but I am who I am. I was always the trickster in our village, and I never lost that spirit of mischievousness. It came in quite handy during the early days in Salem. There was never a dull moment."

"Eric, you're a cad." I said, grabbing him by the face and kissing him.

"Yes, ma'am." He was giving me 'the look' as my friends and I often referred to our partner's aroused face.

"Gag." Patricia said, bringing giggles to each of us. Eric was excluded, of course, since he had no idea what were laughing about, and I wasn't sure that he knew how to giggle.

"Well, come on, let's change clothes and we'll go ghost hunting." Marci said. I agreed that was a good plan, and my friends headed off to their room to change. I gathered up my bags to empty their contents on the bed.

Eric's arms wound around my shoulders so he could rub up against my back as he located the item that he had discovered earlier.

"This is excruciatingly alluring."

"That is precisely why I bought it."

"Wear it."

"And tease you all night? I'd never." To show him just how 'I'd never' I took the matching bra and panty set from him, freeing it of it's price tags. It had been triple the price that I would normally pay for such a set, but I knew when I saw it that Eric would love it. The bra was a mock bustier; the lacy material that covered the cups extended downward to the top of my waist, and the panties were a barely there thong made of matching lace. The lace was an antiqued cream color, and there was only flesh toned solid color backing on the bra cups and face of the thong. Eric preferred semi-transparent lingerie the best.

He watched with hungry eyes as I peeled off my shirt and pants, followed by my undergarments. I was preparing to put on the new lingerie when I felt his arms encircle my waist.

"Let's be quick, Lotus."

"Oh, no, you don't. I'm not letting you get me all sweaty and sticky before we go out. I can never hide it when we've just had sex, and I don't want to be self-conscious."

"You should never be self-conscious for doing what comes naturally to that beautiful body of yours." His lips caressed my neck as he spoke, sending shivers down my spine.

"I know what you're doing, Eric Northman, and I won't give in. I don't care how much you compliment me, or how good your lips feel on my neck, I'm not letting you get me all hot and sticky."

"When we return then."

"We'll see."

"So we shall." His hands snaked down to cup my breasts, pinching my nipples slightly before he released me. As intended, his actions made my arousal flare, much to his personal delight. "Uhmm. I love it when you smell like that."

"Eric. Go take a cold shower and let me get dressed already!"

"Whatever you desire, min sexiga älskare."

He took me at my word, taking one of those super fast showers that he often did when I was hurrying him, or in this case, leaving him high and dry.

Thanks to his attempt at seduction, I barely finished pulling my clothes on when I heard either Marci or Patricia knock on the door.

"Ready?" Patricia asked.

"Not quite," I replied, "I misplaced my shoes." I was lying, since I didn't want them to know the real reason I was running behind. "Hang on a minute, okay?"

"No problem." Marci and Patricia made themselves comfortable on the couch, which wasn't difficult as it was a very plush couch.

I located my comfortable walking shoes, which turned out to actually be misplaced after all, and brought them into the living area to put on. I had left my handbag in there as well, and I needed to check to make sure that I had everything that I needed.

"Lotus, I can't find my cell. Have you seen it?" Eric called from the bedroom. I glanced around the open space, and located it on the counter next to the empty decanter his blood had arrived in.

"It's in the kitchen; I'll get it for you." I got up to get it, and as I came back around the counter, Eric exited the bedroom into the living room. Both my friends' jaws went slack and their eyes glazed over.

The subject of their stupor was my barely clothed fiancé. He was still pulling on his shirt, and hadn't even begun buttoning it, so in essence, he was nude from the hips up. He had donned those extra low cut leather pants he favored that were so low cut that one could almost see the 'point' of what our high school health teacher had referred to as the 'dangerous V.'

"I'm the last one to be ready, then." he said, not acknowledging the behavior of my best friends. I couldn't answer him for laughing so hard.

The alert tone of Eric's cell woke both women from their daze like it had been a tazer. Quickly, they tried to find something, anything, other than the supreme form of Eric to look at.

I tossed the phone to Eric, who caught it easily. He buttoned his shirt with one hand impressively while he read the text. His face fell a bit as he read.

"Everything all right, Eric?" I didn't like to see that expression on his face. It often meant that he had to attend to some mysterious vampire business.

"Yes, fine. Pam's still acting juvenile, that's all."

I didn't believe him, but I didn't push further. He would tell me in his own time, or he wouldn't. I trusted his judgment.

"Then get your shoes on, and lets get out of here. What would Pam say if a bunch of humans were waiting around on a slow vampire?"

Apparently that was the right thing to say to make him pick up the pace. He was finished and at the door waiting on us before we could even swing our handbags over our shoulders.


	4. Chapter 4

**4**

"What's bothering you, Eric? There's something you've been thinking about for the past few days that you won't tell me."

It was wrong of me to ambush him with this question so soon after intimacy, when he had let his guard down. If I hadn't asked it now, however, I did not know if he would ever share it with me.

"I…I don't want to your feelings to be hurt."

"Why would they be hurt?"

"They would be hurt if you knew what has plagued my mind recently."

"Please, tell me. My feelings will be hurt if you don't tell me. And you don't know if my feelings will be hurt by what you have to say, anyway."

"They will, but I shall tell you anyway. It's not right for you not to know." He laid back against the pillow, crossing his arms across his chest as he stared at the ceiling. "I have been thinking about how my relationship was with Sookie."

"Okay." His confession stung more than a little bit, but I had to know why. "What about it?"

"She left me because I couldn't give her two things: time together in the sun, and children." This was not new information, so I waited as patiently as I could for him to continue. "There is nothing I could do to give her the sun. I did not, however, do all I could to give her children." I wanted to stop him there and tell him that he was being ridiculous. Vampires, by definition, were dead, therefore they were infertile. He continued to speak, the words tumbling out of his mouth now that they had started coming. "Pam texted me a few days ago, telling me- most unnecessarily- that Sookie has given birth to the shape shifter's child. Since then, my mind has been turning over and over the reasons that I did not explore every avenue available to try to give her at least one of the things that she wanted, one that I might have been able to give her. I have come to the conclusion that I did not want to father her children; I suspect the allure of her faery blood addled my mind in respects to her, but my lucid mind clung to my true desires. Now that she's found what she was looking for, I am left feeling… I feel…I just feel inadequate."

"Eric." I whispered, my heart breaking for him.

"I am not inadequate!" He had propped himself up onto his elbow, facing me, his teeth clenched in the frighteningly intimidating way that he had when he was angry or threatened. I balked, his reaction unexpected. I was so caught off guard, tears leapt to my eyes, and began to spill over despite my efforts to dam them. Immediately, Eric softened, realizing his actions were too much for me. He squashed me to him, clutching me a little tighter than comfortably. "I am sorry, Lotus. I did not mean to frighten you. You are my heart, and I should remember that, no matter how terrible I am feeling."

"You are not inadequate because you cannot have children, Eric. I would never hold that against you."

"I know. One day soon, though, your body will ache to bear children, and I will not see you go childless on my account."

"Eric, what do you think you can do? Vampires are infertile-"

"And so are some humans, but that does not prevent them from conceiving children through science."

My shock translated to my face though I tried to hide it.

"In vitro fertilization. Do you really think that will work? That scientists can make your sperm viable?"

"I do not see why they could not. I've done research, and if a human man's body produces sperm until the day he dies, I should no longer have ejaculate. I have been dead a over a thousand years- a thirty year old human man could not have produced and stored enough ejaculate to last so long, especially considering the amount of desire I possess-"

"Amen to that." I said quietly, forgetting that Eric's hearing was exceptional at the least. He raised an eyebrow to me, but continued with his theory rather than ask what I meant.

"So, it stands to reason that somehow I am still producing sperm."

I sat up. That made sense, real scientific sense.

"And if you are still producing sperm, though infertile, they could still be viable."

"Yes."

"_Eric_." Until this moment, I had never considered having children, because I knew Eric could not have any. But now, I realized that having a child by Eric would be the most amazing thing that I could ever do. "Oh, Eric."

"Lotus, you're shaking. Are you all right?" The compassion he showed to me then was not helping me keep a rational mindset. Right this moment, my body wanted nothing more than to be carrying Eric's child.

"We could have a baby."

It was then that Eric realized what his words had done to me. He had turned on my maternal clock when I had for so long managed to keep it quiet.

"Lotus, I am sorry. I truly am. I've gotten your hopes up for something that has every possibility of being nothing but the fantasy of my jilted mind. Please, please, do not let this affect you. I cannot cause you this pain, I simply cannot."

"Could we try, Eric? Won't you at least try it? For me."

"Lotus, it's purely fancy. It will not work."

"Please, Eric. I want to try. If it doesn't work, then there's nothing that can be done, but we have to try. If there's even a chance that I could…that we could…we'll never know if we don't attempt it."

He looked at me, his eyes locked onto mine, for several minutes before he spoke.

"I hate that my words have caused you to hope for this, this impossible thing. I love you more than I love my own life, and for you, I will do this. I beg of the gods that this does not crush your soul, and that when there is no outcome, you can still love me as you did this night. For you, my love, I will do this." I would have made love to him right then, if he had released me. Instead he held me tightly to him, stroking my hair with his long fingers. "I will make arrangements for tomorrow to see the most qualified doctor in this field. We shall not cut corners; if we are to do this, we will do this well."

"I love you, Eric."

"And I love you, kära. More than the sun."

I found that sleep was going to elude me this night. I tossed and turned as I tried to quiet my mind, which was toiling with the suggested that Eric had planted there. He laid there waiting for me to drift away, as he did every night. He stroked my back for the longest time, attempting to help me fall asleep, but to no avail.

I had known from the moment I began to have feelings for this man- this powerful, often devious, most dangerous, mysterious and secretly loving man- that my life would not be the way that I had always imagined it. My original life plan had been to complete my degree in design, and work my way up to having my own design business. Then, I could allow myself to find a husband. We would travel some to exotic locales, and buy a house. After that, we'd get a dog and build up our savings. Finally, it would be time to have a baby, or two, raise it, send it off to college and travel some more.

I had barely begun living my plan when I had gotten the Fangtasia design job. The other girls in the office had entirely refused to take on the job commissioned by a vampire. Most of the girls were terrified to do so, and the rest just didn't like vampires. Even if they hadn't been so adverse, none of them would have gotten the job because their style skills were focused elsewhere than the neo-Gothic style the job required. With my extensive skills in multiple styles, paired with my fearless attitude, I had won the job, and with it the more than substantial paycheck.

I had been a little nervous that first night I walked into the bar, having never been in a vampire centric institution before. My experience with vampires had been minimal, at best, and short-lived. There had been a newly changed vampire in one of my night classes, and I sometimes took my clothing to the vampire owned and run all night dry cleaners.

The bar had been closed when I arrived, though young human club goers had already lined up outside the doors in anticipation. Pam had been waiting for me just outside the door, though I hadn't known who she was at the time; she had known me on sight as her 'appointment.' The clubbers had shot me a range of looks from jealous to hateful to curious as a corset and vinyl clad Pam had shown me inside.

She called to Eric, which wasn't so much a call as saying his name out loud. I was sizing up the current décor and the layout of the bar so I didn't notice Eric enter. Seeing him standing there in front of me didn't prove to be difficult, since he was the biggest man that I had ever seen in person in addition to the most handsome.

Meeting Eric that night had been the start of the biggest change in my life, and in me. I had lost that selfishness and arrogance that a single woman has when she is trying to keep her heart shut off by the third time I spoke with Eric; there was something about him that opened up something in me that no one ever had. My plans changed shortly after the first date we shared, and I no longer let myself consider the traditional family route as an option for me. I had been happy to change my dreams for Eric, but until he mentioned it, I hadn't been aware of how much I had wanted a family.

At last, I slid off into sleep, dreaming in the most odd manner I had ever dreamed. I dreamed multiple dreams at once, all meshing together into an impossible to follow storyline. Eric slept like the dead, per his nature. Having him there next to me was comforting, even if he didn't move to hold me when I curled up against his chilly body.


	5. Chapter 5

**5**

The emotional rollercoaster of the night before warranted one of the longest stretches of sleep I had ever experienced once I finally got to sleep. It was nearly sundown when I woke.

I turned over to look at Eric, whose still as death sleep often scared me. His cheeks were stained with the tracks of bloody tears. I hadn't known that he had cried last night, by his design, most likely. He wouldn't want me to know, so I prepared a washcloth with warm water and washed away the evidence of his emotion. There was nothing I could do to remove the discoloration on the sheets, but I would certainly pretend that I had not seen anything amiss upon the linens.

Quietly as possible, I went about my business in the bathroom, and left for the living area. I dialed Marci's cell number. I could really use her perceptive council right now, and since she and Patricia's vacation allotment was up a few days ago, I couldn't walk down the hall and ask her in person.

"Hello." Marci's voice said. I was sure I heard the crunch of pretzels, Marci's all time favorite snack being consumed in the background noise. I didn't mind her eating while we were on the phone, since we were so close. Otherwise, it would definitely be rude. "How are ya?"

"Hey, Marci. I need your smarts right about now."

"Okay, what's up?" I recounted to her Eric's theory, which happened to be something that she knew a bit about since she was a gynecological nurse by profession. She dealt with infertility issues every day. "It's certainly a theory with merit. There's a spectacular fertility specialist down in Baton Rouge that is just about crazy enough to take on the challenge; I can give you his number. Is this what you guys really want? I thought that you weren't particularly interested with having children, Lotus."

"I suppose I wasn't when we couldn't have any, but I was just fooling myself in the end. I love Eric, and I wanted to make him happy, and if I was content without a child, I knew he would be, as well. He wants a child, but I know he won't say it in those words, and I guess we're the same in that way, because I certainly wouldn't have said anything myself."

"If there was ever a couple that were two perfect peas in a pod, it'd be you two, you know that, right?" She giggled through her crunching.

"Totally."

"I hope it works, Lotus. I really do."

"Thanks, Marci. I really appreciate that."

Marci snorted suddenly.

"Patricia's going to flip when she hears about this."

"Oh, hell. She sure will. Let's not tell her unless there's news to tell."

"That's a deal! God, what would your children look like?"

We amused ourselves by creating images of mine and Eric's future children until I heard Eric begin to stir. It wasn't quite dark yet, but sometimes Eric was an early riser. I ended the call, thanking Marci for her help, and promising to update her on any progress made.

Eric came through the door, stretching his already lengthy arms above his head as soon as there was enough ceiling clearance to do so.

"Hey, there, handsome." My talk with Marci had left me in a good mood, and I was feeling a little flirty.

"God morgon, mitt hjärta." his greeting was a little garbled due to the bend of his stretched neck constricting his vocal cords.

"I have good news," I told him, almost giddy as I attempted to not blurt it out.

"What would that be?" he asked, sprawling out on the couch next to me, resting his head in my lap.

"I found us a fertility specialist in Baton Rouge-"

"Would that be a Dr. Kerns?"

"Well, yeah. How did you know?"

"I'm one step ahead of you; we have an appointment this evening at eight with him. I thought since we were headed home tonight to begin with, stopping by this evening would be time effective."

"That's my Eric, always the businessman." We sat in comfortable silence for a short while, Eric enjoying the sensation of my fingers stroking his hair. I thought about asking Eric what had brought him to tears, but scrapped the idea as quickly as it popped into my head.

Eric's cell phone started ringing on the table next to me where we had placed our phones to charge overnight, his utterly obnoxious ring tone pushing our peaceful silence away.

"Don't worry, dear, I'll get it." I told him just a little bit sarcastically when he did not so much as flinch to attempt to pick it up. If he had been a cat, he would have been purring from enjoyment thanks to my fingers running across his scalp. "Good evening, you've reached Eric Northman's phone. He is occupied at the moment; may I take a message?"

"This is Bill Compton, King of Louisiana. You will locate Eric and put him on the phone. Now."

Little did this Bill Compton know, King of Louisiana or not, I would do absolutely no such thing. Politeness went a long way with me, and rudeness did not. I was like Eric with being kept waiting when it came to rudeness; I would not tolerate it. I would break my back to help a polite person, and would meet rudeness like a brick wall.

"Oh, I'm certain that I will do no such thing, Mr. Compton. I do not tolerate rudeness, particularly when I am on the receiving end of such bad manners and am undeserving of said treatment. If you desire to speak to Eric, you will speak to me with respect. Do you comprehend, Mr. Compton?"

Eric sat up to listen to my demand, doubled over with not so silent laughter, his muscles rippling, unencumbered by a shirt. He was clearly attempting to laugh quietly, I suspect so that I could continue to tell this Bill Compton what for.

"I am the King; _I _will be the one to issue commands, Miss. Produce Eric."

"That's not quite enough to rectify the situation you have gotten yourself into, Mr. Compton. I will give you credit for addressing me properly, but your etiquette is still lacking. Like I said, I will not comply until you treat me with the respect I deserve."

"Your attitude is ludicrous."

"Your manners are reprehensible."

"I will have your head if you do not obey!" Eric's glee was extinguished as he heard the voice on the line utter those word. He extended his hand to me to place the telephone in it, his blue eyes filled with fury.

"You most surely will not, sir." I would have my say before I relinquished the phone to my vampire fiance. "I am not one of your subjects that you can order around. I have had more than I can abide of your disgraceful conduct and if you do not issue to me a sincere apology posthaste, I will be forced to go against my nature and report you to the authorities for communicating threats. As a King, I believe that you will be quite aware of the ensuing outcome of a vampire king issuing threats against a simple human woman who wanted nothing more than to be treated as politely as she deserves."

Eric grinned through his anger, making him altogether the poster boy for danger.

"That's my feisty Lotus." he growled. I wasn't sure whether his growl was one of arousal or anger. Whatever it was, it was pretty startling.

After a long pause, Bill Compton spoke.

"I do apologize, ma'am, for my callous behavior. I regret my immoderate language, and truly hope that you can forgive me. If he is available, I would very much like to speak with Mr. Northman." His voice was light, but his undertone was clearly insinuating that I had better not meet him in a dark alleyway.

"Thank you, Mr. Compton. I appreciate your apology. If you would please hold, I will inform Eric that you wish to speak with him."

"Thank you; I will be glad to wait."

I handed the phone to Eric, who leaned forward to swiftly kiss me, a hard and rough kiss accented by the presence of his fangs. Obviously, Eric approved of perfectly polite, yet bitchy, me.

"This is Eric Northman." I couldn't hear what Bill Compton had to say on the other end of the line because I didn't have the extra sensitive hearing that Eric had, so I decided to amuse myself in another way. I vacated my seat to straddle Eric's lap, busying my mouth on his phone-free ear and neck below. He leaned back to allow me better access, laying his head back against the couch, closing his eyes as the sensations traveled down his nerves and back. This close to him, I could hear the tiny voice of the vampire king I had just verbally dominated jabbering away into Eric's other ear. As diabolical as it was, I quite enjoyed making it difficult for my fiancé to concentrate on whatever business was at hand.

"Are you listening to me, Eric?" I heard the tiny, irritated voice say. I upped my ante, finding much to occupy me with my hands while my mouth was busy elsewhere.

"I am here." Eric said, swallowing hard, his eyes trained on me. He listened as closely as he could with my brand of distraction in full swing. My enjoyment was cut short by Eric's hands; he lifted me by my hips off his lap, depositing me beside him on the couch. He held up a finger to me in the universal signal that meant 'wait,' then putting away what I had taken out. Eric sat forward, his full attention on the conversation at hand. "I will do as you ask, but tonight it is not possible." He paused, listening to whatever he was being told. "No, Bill, I will not. There is an engagement tonight that I cannot neglect- It is of no consequence what it concerns, I will not bypass it! Send Pam if this message must be relayed tonight; she is much closer, and as a messenger, she will be more accepted." Pause. "You know perfectly why, Bill." Longer pause. The scowl that had been growing on Eric's lips since he stopped my erogenous activities reached full force. "As you command, Sire. I shall deliver the message tonight." The two vampires wrapped up the call and Eric tossed the phone on the couch opposite us. "I'll do it at my own pace, however, you worthless maggot." He sighed, then looked at me. "I regret interrupting you, älskara. Where were you?"

"Here." I resumed my former position, pushing him back against the couch forcefully. I wasn't particularly aggravated that he had quelled my earlier task, since I was only doing it to be mischievous. Something Eric had been told had stoked the fire of violence he held in check behind his mask of professionalism; my vampire was in dire need of some rough loving to douse the flames that burned within him.

I released his manhood once again, hovering just above it, but not allowing contact. His neck once again became the subject of my foreplay. Eric's hands took hold of my hips to guide them in a slow, tantalizing full-length rub against his standing shaft. The sensation of his rock hard stick against my most tender places made me burn for him. He was taking control of our tryst, but I wasn't going to allow that. I bit him, right in the curve of his neck where it connected to his shoulder. A deep moan came up from his throat, and his fangs instantly protruded.

I released his throat, sitting back so that his phallus was positioned directly between my glutes, and pulled the shirt of Eric's that I had worn to bed off over my head, revealing my unrestricted breasts to him.

"You are exquisite." His voice was lower, heavy with lust, just like I preferred it to be. The blue of his eyes followed the curves in my chest, looking on with desire.

"Fuck me, Eric. Don't hold back." I whispered directly into his ear. His response was immediate: his hands on my hips took hold of my panties and ripped them in half. They landed somewhere in the vicinity of the kitchen, but that was only a guess, since the second I was free of them, I was filled up with Eric.

He took me at my word, and ravaged me with such intensity not only did I scream with pleasure, but with pain as well. The couch, coffee table, kitchenette counter and dining room table played hosts to our desires, more than one item of furniture bearing deep scratch marks from my fingernails. Several slick spots across the floors paid testimony to the abilities of my lover. The control I had tried to maintain was long gone by the time he finally was sated, his member buried deep within me and his fangs sunk deeply around my areolas. He took more blood from me than usual, so much so that I felt very faint when he released me.

Eric recovered long before I did, pushing himself off the dining room table with ease.

"Älskare, what has my passion done to you? Come here to me." He helped me to roll over there on the tabletop, and extended his wrist to me, biting it with his fangs before he did so. "Drink."

Drink I did. I usually did not take his blood after copulation, but tonight was a night that I could not do without it. My body was already bruising from the impact of being moved from hard surface to hard surface, and my reproductive organs felt as if a convoy of Mack trucks had advanced and reversed for days within me. The breast that Eric had admired earlier now bore the deepest fang lacerations I had ever endured. As I drank, the aches in my genitals dissipated, the bruises faded, and the lacerations healed.

Within a few minutes I felt restored and rejuvenated.

"Thank you." I told him after I released his wrist.

"I should be the one giving thanks." Eric scooped me up off the table and carried me into the bathroom, placing me carefully on the long bench between the shower and the tub. He reached into the shower to start the water. "What you allowed me to do to your body tonight…I should have never done, but needed to do. You are a phenomenal partner, Louts; thank you."

"I just want you to be happy."

"With you, I am. You are the part of me that I have been missing for so many centuries, Lotus. I can't imagine myself without you."

Hearing those words while my post-coital hormones were still racing brought on a rush of emotion that overwhelmed me. I couldn't prevent myself from crying.

"Have I said something to upset you?" Eric kneeling there before me with his long arms wrapped around my waist and his face full of concern didn't do anything but add to the storm of emotion hanging over me.

"No, Eric. You're just so sweet, and I love you so much. I just am so happy, and I started crying. I know it's stupid…"

Eric chuckled and shook his head, that goofy smile of his on his lips.

"I'm over a thousand years old, and I still don't understand why you women do the things you do sometimes."

"Woman is a synonym for conundrum, Eric."

"As I have come to know." He helped me to my feet, and opened the shower door for me. "Come, we're behind schedule. You're covered in blood and sex, and if you show up to the appointment like that, I don't suppose the meeting will go well at all."

"I can't imagine that it would."

He washed me, and I him, which resulted in us further becoming behind schedule, though we were two completely relaxed people running late.

Eric had dressed up, a seldom occurring anomaly. Seeing him in black slacks, a grey dress shirt and a dark grey houndstooth sport coat, his shoes sparkling, was a treat. He was a master of disguise, my Eric: dressed this way, men would respect him, and woman would adore him. This tactic would sway the doctor in favor of accepting Eric's proposal, he hoped, and as long as he had been around humans and the way their minds worked, it was bound to work.

I had chosen an A-line skirt perfect for the weather and occasion, but Eric had nixed it. "It's a surprise" he said when I asked him why he wanted me to wear slacks instead. As a substitute, I donned a pair of dressy Bermuda shorts made of a black matte material, pairing them with a silky shirt in a plum jewel tone. A pair of matte leather heels, short and demure rather than tall and sexy, finished my outfit. I did not accessorize because I knew if I did, I would be playing with whatever necklace, or bracelet, I wore due to nerves. Hidden beneath Eric's nice clothing was his whale bone pendant; it was serving as his 'good luck charm' tonight.

"Pull your hair up." Eric told me when I started to straighten my hair. I didn't protest. Usually, Eric was not concerned with what I chose to wear, or how I chose to wear my hair (save for if I wanted to cut it shorter than my shoulders, which made him crinkle his nose) unless there was a legitimate reason. I suspect it was the same reason why I needed to wear slacks. I straightened my hair and pulled it back into a high ponytail, wrapping around and pinning a section of hair at the base to hide the elastic, like I had seen Victoria Beckham wear so many times in paparazzi photos. "Excellent choice. Very nice." Eric submitted approvingly.

I grabbed a light cardigan and a matching handbag before we headed out. Bobby Burnham was coming to fetch our luggage, Eric had told me, since we weren't coming back to the hotel. I had made sure that I had packed everything, and hadn't left anything out to be left behind. Still, I worried that I had forgotten something, and missed what button Eric had pressed on the elevator panel.

"Take my arm, pet. Brace yourself."

I didn't have time to question him, I just did as he asked. The elevator door opened into a small alcove leading directly to the roof of the hotel. The roof was too dark for me to see far, only the small red and white lights around the helicopter landing area shining.

The massive hulk of the helicopter was not hard to miss, however, even with my limited eyesight. The machine was a massive black hole against a slightly less black night sky. Also, the propellers were spinning at medium speed, the vehicle almost ready to take to the air.

I was glad I had listened to Eric and worn slacks. The updraft caused by the propeller blades would have inverted my skirt before I could move my hands to hold it down.

Quick as lightening, Eric had me sitting in the helicopter, strapped in and with headphones on. Eric followed suit in the next seat, looking quite comical with the oversized headgear over his ears. With that very Eric hand gesture as confirmation, the pilot had us in the air.

"Var lugn, min käre en." Eric's voice said over the headset as the initial lurch of the helicopter made my breath catch and my heart skip. "In 45 minutes we will land in Baton Rouge. Until then, enjoy the view."

I snuck a peak out the window beside me. The city of New Orleans sprawled beneath me, electric lights twinkling like the stars above us. I watched the world below as we glided across the sky, feeling oddly powerful as I viewed the glittering city give way to the rivers and lakes of the state, the lights of individual homes twinkling in the black of their surroundings. Soon, Baton Rouge overtook the dark expanses of the swampy forests, the interstate below moving like a parade of lights.

"We're here already? It felt like ten minutes!" I said. Eric smirked.

"I feel the same when I take flight." he replied. Eric was one of the vampires that had developed the ability to fly in their long lives. The ability wasn't an uncommon talent, but it was exclusive to the oldest of vampires.

The helicopter touched down at a small private airport, where a car and driver were waiting for us. It wasn't a limousine, but a mid-sized luxury sedan much like those that royal families across the world favored. The windows were tinted darkly, and there was even a dark window partition like the ones in limousines. A miniature refrigerator even graced the back seat area, filled with a variety of drinks that would appeal to both Eric and myself.

I did not comment on the excess tonight; it would be pointless, as Eric appreciated luxury. Besides, I was far too nervous to care about the unnecessary extravagance.

"Perhaps this was a bad idea, Eric. Maybe we should just cancel and go home."

He didn't reply for a while, looking through the window, but not really seeing.

"It's just a consultation. There is no harm in going."

"You're right." Right though he was, I still felt like evacuating my stomach.

Ten minutes saw us at the door of a neatly kept, well maintained office building. The office itself was in a little medical complex, clearly where the most affluent in Baton Rouge took their families evidenced by the lavish architecture of the entire complex. I steadied my breathing, which was so rapid that I was close to having a panic attack.

Eric said nothing, but kissed my forehead, his big hand on the back of my neck comfortingly. If I weren't mistaken, I thought I felt his lips quivering.

The driver opened Eric's door, and he bent his tall body so that he could exit. He extended his hand to me to assist my exit. Eric offered me his arm, which I clung to though trying not to look as if that was what I was doing. In the office we went, lit up like a beacon just for us. Sitting in the middle of the waiting room was a girl in her mid teens, dressed head to toe in the ridiculous dark style that the patrons of Eric's bar favored. She dropped the magazine she was reading when we entered. Her attitude clearly showed that she had been commandeered by her father to be his greeter, and that she wasn't happy about it. That attitude switched from bored contempt to awe and badly veiled glee when she looked upon Eric and realized that he was not just incredibly handsome, but very much a vampire.

"Mr. and Mrs. Northman." she all but purred in that way a teenage girl does when she thinks she's being mysterious and alluring. Even hearing myself referred to as Eric's wife in this stupid tone was enough to lift my spirits, however. "Please, come this way. My fath- Dr. Kerns is waiting for you in his office."

We followed the girl, my face scrunching up in distaste. This girl had no idea how ridiculous she was presenting herself. Eric's smirk reappeared; I couldn't tell whether it was because of the girl's pathetic attempts to impress Eric, or because of my silly expression.

She showed us through the open office door where he father stood from behind his desk to greet us. He had several thick books open on his desk and a spiral bond notebook filled with notes sitting on the desk top. He invited us to sit, and he told his daughter to remain in the waiting room.

"Dad, you didn't tell me your client was a _vampire_." The daughter whispered, making her father roll her eyes. Once again, he directed her to the waiting room, closing the door behind her as she exited.

"I apologize for my daughter; she's in her rebellious stage. Anything remotely dark or dangerous is her drug of choice. My wife says she wishes there was a way to just skip the whole stage altogether; it's driving her crazy."

"It can be done." Eric said, his left eyebrow raising up mischievously. The doctor regarded him for a long moment.

"I may take you up on that offer, Mr. Northman."

"She's that difficult?" Eric seemed delighted. He loved a difficult human. There was not one yet that he couldn't scare straight.

"Incredibly so." The doctor took his seat, after earning himself a few points during introductions by only offering his hand to me. "Please tell me your story once more."

Eric recounted to him my desire to have children, and his desire to father them. He detailed his theory, to which the doctor listened avidly. I remained quiet, doing my best not to tremble in my seat. Eric wrapped his hand around mine where it sat in my lap, rubbing his thumb gently across the soft skin.

"It's a fascinating theory, Mr. Northman, and with all the right nuances considered. I've been refreshing my own knowledge of new advancements, and I am cautiously optimistic that we may be able to have success with this, if we can determine the sperm is viable. If it is, then we will follow the usual procedures and do all that we can to implant a successful pregnancy." My heart leapt when I heard the word 'pregnancy' and Eric patted my hand soothingly. If it's not, there are several avenues that we can explore. There has been a little advancement in the application of electrotherapy to sterile sperm, but typically the stimulated sperm does not remain viable for long. I believe that with stronger ejaculate, the therapy could be entirely successful. Since vampires are stronger in every respect than humans, it stands to reason that vampiric sperm would not be excluded." Eric nodded. "There is also the option of genetic replication using donor ejaculate. This therapy is in it's infancy, and has yet to produce viable sperm."

The doctor and Eric conversed forth and back for at least an hour regarding tests, samples and time frames, among so many other things I thought my head would explode. I just wanted to have Eric's baby, whatever route we took. All this talking was just making me feel like we had wasted our time coming here, and getting my hopes up for nothing.

At last, the two men had finished their conversation, and had made another after dark appointment for a week after to begin taking samples and beginning tests. The doctor seemed excited to begin this venture that would hopefully be his claim to scientific fame.

He walked us out. His daughter was still in the waiting room like her father had told her to be, and she had further dolled herself up. A groan escaped her father's lips when he saw the excessive makeup and clothing adjustments his daughter had made in her attempt to extol her virtues to the vampire.

"I can cure this mania for you." Eric offered. The doctor looked from Eric to his tartly dressed daughter and sighed.

"God forgive me, but please, do." he hung his head. "Lord help me if my wife ever finds out."

Eric sat beside the teen, who couldn't have been more excited if her favorite rock star had offered to kiss her. Probably thinking herself invincible, if she was thinking at all, she leaned in close to Eric when he leaned toward her. She met Eric's blue eyes with her green eyes, batting her false eyelashes.

"What is your name?" Eric asked. The tone he used when he began to glamour someone never, ever failed to give me the creeps. It was low and intimate, comforting and demure, and utterly, seriously dangerous. I patted the doctor on the arm reassuringly, telling him quietly that he had nothing to worry about.

"Gracie." The girl replied, her body language changing as Eric's influence penetrated her brain. She moved herself back from Eric, sitting up straight, and crossing her legs like a lady should. Her eyes, trained on Eric's intently, were glazed over.

"Gracie, your behavior has been causing your parents distress. You must discontinue your acts of rebellion and become a young lady of whom your parents can be proud."

"I just wanted to have some fun. The bad girls at school get to do whatever they want, even date vampires. The boys are all over them. I just want a powerful, cool boyfriend."

Gracie's confession made the doctor squirm. Hearing his little girl say these things made him uncomfortable, understandably.

"Vampires do not date schoolchildren, Gracie. Those girls are lying to you. If you truly want to have a powerful partner, you must gain your own power first. Education, confidence and hard work are all a young lady needs to attract a man of power. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"You must also give up this disgusting clothing fancy. No vampire wants a woman who cannot dress like a respectable lady. Nor do they want an uneducated, impolite wild girl. Now, repeat to me what you are going to do."

"I will stop acting out. I will get my education and act like a young lady that my parents will be proud to claim. To get a powerful and cool boyfriend, I need to first build up myself. I must dress respectably."

"That's very good, Gracie. When you get home, I want you take off that terrible makeup and that revealing clothing and fix yourself up nicely. Apologize to your parents for your errant behaviors. Start treating yourself and your family with respect."

"Yes, sir."

"Excellent manners. Remember what you've been told, Gracie, but do not remember that I was the one to tell you. Do not tell your mother. Do not speak of this to anyone."

"I promise, I won't."

Eric released his influence on her, it's effects noticeable immediately. Gracie blinked hard several times, as if she couldn't see Eric sitting right in front of her. He rose and crossed to stand beside me. The young girl looked down at herself only to seem disgusted with the clothing on her body; she immediately began trying to pull the neckline of her shirt up to cover her excessive cleavage.

"Amazing. Mr. Northman, I can't thank you enough." Dr. Kerns said, smiling from ear to ear.

"It's my pleasure." It truly was Eric's pleasure; he loathed bratty children.

"She won't remember being…" Dr. Kerns hesitated to say 'glamoured' so that Gracie would not hear. "She won't recognize that it happened if she sees you again?"

"She will not remember. It's not uncommon for the recipient to become more deferential to the vampire that performed the 'act,' but there will be no harm done."

"Daddy, can I wear your lab coat?" The doctor was over the moon at the immediate change in his daughter.

"I will do everything I can to assist you in your journey, Mr. and Mrs. Northman." said the doctor as he showed us out. I believed that he would after the change Eric instilled in his daughter. Watching Eric with the young girl made me sure that he could be an excellent parent, even if he was only glamouring the girl.

I cuddled up against him when we were comfortable in the car, his strong arm encircling the majority of my body because of the length of his wingspan.

"What is it, lover?" he asked, laying his cheek on the top of my head.

"You were very good with her. I know you were just glamouring her, but you still spoke so she could understand you."

"I have always been good with children."

"I could tell."

"What did you think of the doctor's proposal? You were strangely silent. It's unlike you."

"I don't care how it's done, Eric. I just want to have your child." The tears that had been threatening to spill over the whole time we were in the office finally overflowed. I buried my head into Eric's chest, letting the tears fall unhampered onto his shirt while he held me.

"I will give my child to you, Lotus. I cannot allow you to be so pained. I will make this happen."

My reply was little more than a whine, but I think Eric understood. It was by his arms again I found myself placed in the helicopter directly from the car. I did not ask for him to carry me. Eric must have sensed that the overwhelming emotion had caused my legs to turn to jelly. For the entire hour and a half flight back to Shreveport I laid my head in his lap, crying on and off. I did not look at the scenery below. All I needed was Eric.


	6. Chapter 6

**6**

"I have an errand to which I must attend before we can return to my house." Eric said just before we passed the exit that would take us in the direction of his house. I had known that this announcement was coming since he received the call in the hotel room.

"I know. What is it that rude King Bill has bidden you to do?"

Despite my description of his boss, Eric did not chuckle.

"I must extend congratulations to Sookie and her husband on the birth of their child on behalf of Bill and the vampires of Louisiana."

"Ugh, Bill's a douche."

"He is indeed." Eric removed his sport coat, stretching as he did so. I brought forth a wet wipe from my bag, which I always kept handy just in case Eric managed to get a little messy (which was often) and dabbed at his shirt where my makeup had mixed with my tears and smeared on his shirt. "He just didn't want to do it himself, the coward."

"Maybe one day I'll get to meet Sookie and see what all the fuss is about."

"That'll be tonight."

"Huh?" I stopped dabbing at his shirt to stare at him. I had no idea what he meant.

"You're coming with me. I don't want to bring her congratulations and look like I've done it out of love for her. That's what Bill desires; he has made it part of his royal agenda to fuck with me every chance he gets, because Sookie left him for me, as you know."

"And he's still not over that, even though everyone else has moved on to someone new?"

"He is nothing but a child playing king."

"It surely sounds that way." I moved from his shirt to his pants, where I had lain on the second flight. I had managed to mess his pants up as well. Eric growled low in his throat, becoming aroused since I was so close to his manhood. "You quit that, now. We don't have time for that, and this is _not _the place."

"Hrumph." replied Eric. "It would definitely send the message that I was over her if we had each other's scents…"

"We already do, Eric Northman, and I will absolutely not meet your ex, her husband and their baby with your sex scent all over me." Eric opened his mouth to protest. "No. That's final."

"Ugh, kvinnor." grumbled Eric, somewhat jokingly.

"Ugh, Viking vampires." I shot back, just as partially seriously. Eric had not expected that I would retort. He laughed.

"Jag älskar dig." There was that goofy smile again. I loved seeing him smile like that, even if he did look fairly silly.

"That's the answer I was looking for." I finished with his pants, smirking to myself about the location of the damp spot. I really hoped that dried quickly, or I might as well go along with his plan. I might.

His pants were dry when he directed the driver where to turn into the drive to Merlotte's Bar and Grill, which Sookie and her husband owned and operated. It was a quaint little country place, one that would host locals only on most nights. Though not my choice of venue, the bar looked inviting.

I hesitated when Eric got of out the car. Greeting my fiancé's ex in this way seemed impolite, but vampires and other supernatural creatures, like Sookie's husband the shifter, did things in ways different from that of humans.

"There is nothing to be apprehensive about, Lotus. I will not leave your side."

"I wish that I had known ahead of time, so I could prepare for this." I told him as I slid out of the car with the assistance of Eric's big hand.

"And I as well."

Eric held the doors for me, and I laid my eyes for the first time on the interior of Merlotte's. It had a natural, cabin in the woods feel, with the just the right amount of rustic and modern. Taxidermied animals covered the walls, naturally, but not so much so that there were large bears greeting one when the came in.

The job of greeter went to a tall, violently red headed, model caliber beautiful female baby vampire. She looked incredibly bored when I came in, but sprung to action the moment she saw me, her smile as bright as she was beautiful.

"Welcome to Merlotte's-" her oft repeated spiel died out in her mouth when Eric followed me through the door. "Eric!"

She rushed over to him, wrapping her arms around him like a brother she hadn't seen in a year. Her height complimented his, making the hug she dispatched effortless. Eric let her hug him, taking the awkwardness as easily as her could, patting her shoulder twice. She released him, and he did actually permit himself to half-smile at her.

"Long time no see, Jessica."

"Like forever! What can we do ya for tonight, Mr. Sheriff?" This young vampire spoke in a manner much like a somewhat smitten teenager- partly casual, partly flirtatious.

"We are here to speak to Sam, and Sookie, if she is available." Eric informed her. Jessica turned her attention to me, looking horrified that she hadn't introduced herself.

"I'm so sorry to forget myself. Hi, I'm Jessica Hamby." She submitted another toothy smile to me instead of offering her hand. Jessica was full of energy, and a little exhausting, but pleasant. I could not recall of Eric had ever spoken of her, no matter how hard I tried.

"Nice to meet you, Jessica. I'm Lotus Smithson."

"Lotus is my fiancée." Eric notified Jessica when she gave Eric that look that vampires often shared with each other when they were curious of the human's relationship to the vampire. Jessica's face lit up, and if possible, her smile brightened.

"No way!" Eric did not nod, or offer reassurance, but that did not deter young Jessica. "Congratulations, you guys! I hope we're going to get to see some more of each other, Lotus. I get to see a lot of Eric when Bill's wanting him to do something, and as much as I like Eric, I'd much rather have a female companion. Ya'll come this way, and I'll get Sam." She talked at us the whole way across the restaurant, which thankfully wasn't that far.

"Eric." A male voice said over Jessica's chattering. Coming from the vicinity of the kitchen was a man in his thirties with reddish blond hair and a long gait despite his medium stature. He kept his face neutral, but I could tell that Eric was not the first person that this man had wanted to see. "What a nice surprise."

"Good evening, Sam." Eric inclined his head at the man. The usual dance of formalities done, Sam invited us to follow him to his office.

The office was of a fair size, housing a computer desk strewn with the usual paperwork of a small business, a shelf for the employees personal items, and a few extra boxes that overflowed from the hallway.

"What brings you all the way down here tonight, Eric?" Sam did not trust Eric, that much was evident. He was being perfectly polite, however, and that won him some points with me.

"Felicitations are in order, Sam." I couldn't tell from Eric's manner or his tone if he was pained by the task he had been given. Knowing him, I knew he was. I admired his ability to remain calm and professional, so I did my best to follow his lead. "I bring compliments from the vampire community of Louisiana, and King Bill himself, on the birth of your child. Congratulations, Sam."

I hoped that Sam wouldn't catch the slight snub that Eric had included. This task wouldn't go well if he did.

Sam looked startled at first, then pleased as punch. He hadn't caught the snub, probably thanks to his surprise.

"Thanks very much, Eric. Tell Bill we appreciate it, as well."

"I certainly shall."

"Would like to tell Sookie yourself? I see the light on at the house, she should be awake." Sam had put Eric in a pickle; if he refused seeing Sookie, he would offend Sam and anger Bill, but if he agreed to see her, he would be pained by the sight of her with her child. The faery blood within Sookie would see to that.

"That would be welcome, if she feels up to it."

Sam excused himself to give Sookie a call from the phone behind the bar. Eric smirked.

"I don't think that he realizes that I can still hear all that he's saying." he told me. The reason Sam did not use the phone there on the desktop was obvious.

"He's probably more concerned that you'll hear if Sookie says something not so polite."

"Not that his minimal distance makes that impossible."

"He's just trying to be polite."

"He underestimates my abilities."

"Who doesn't, Eric? Poor Dr. Kerns will probably have to make an appointment with a cardiologist in the morning because he underestimated your abilities."

"I believe that you may be right."

At least Eric's mood was somewhat improved by the time Sam returned thanks to my light joke. Eric knew what Sam would be saying, though I did not.

"Sookie said she's coming right over. I told I'd show you over, but you know Sookie; stubborn isn't a strong enough word for her."

Eric actually chuckled. I had heard this was a trait of Sookie's, and it made me more curious to meet her.

Eric and Sam engaged in small talk while we waited, Eric casually dropping the bomb on Sam on the nature of his relationship with me. Sam offered his congratulations to us, keeping his face as neutral as when Eric's presence had caught him by surprise. I hoped that no one would make mention of our engagement in front of Sookie; in her post-partum hormone blitz, her reaction would be unpredictable no matter if she still harbored feelings for Eric or not.

"Knock, knock!" said a female voice just outside the door. Sam jumped up from where he had perched on the edge of the computer desk to open the door as quickly as he could. Sookie entered, her tiny bundle cradled in her arms, wrapped all in blue.

"Hey, darling. Here, have a seat." Sam said, pulling the computer chair out for her to settle into.

"I've only had a baby, Sam. I can still stand, you know." Despite her protest, she took the seat. I could see what the men meant when they said she was stubborn. I couldn't help but smirk at her statement. "Eric, how've you been? It's great to see you."

"And you, too, Sookie." Eric introduced me, before continuing the conversation further. Though I had been hoping that he would refrain for Sookie's hormonal sake, Eric proudly introduced me as his fiancée. A shadow of emotion crossed the blonde woman's face, though I couldn't determine what it was before she smiled. Congratulations were offered all around on engagements and babies. The baby was even offered to Eric to hold, but he instantly declined.

"I haven't held a child in a thousand years," he said. "I fear that I may have forgotten their fragility. I have not forgotten their fragrance, however. Even after all this time, they all still have the same smell."

Sookie seemed fascinated by the unchanging scent of new babies, as was I. That sustained the conversation for a while, dominated mostly by myself and Sookie. I found that I liked the way she thought, and I may even begin to like her the longer we talked. The baby was offered to me to hold, and with no reasonable reason to decline, I found the baby piled into my arms.

He was a larger baby than typical, but still seemed so small. He had that distinctive new baby smell, all right, and his father's reddish hair. He looked up at me with two different colored eyes, one blue, like Sookie's and one green, like Sam's. "He has heterochromia?" I asked.

"Yes." Sam answered, smiling. "I have a barely noticeable case, but little Sam got it full force."

"How neat." I replied. I learned that little Sam's full name was Samuel Earl, after Sam, and Sookie's grandfather. I also learned that I liked the way that a baby felt in my arms, and the way a baby's tiny hungry cry sounded much like a small cat.

We took our leave shortly after I returned little Sam to his mother, Jessica talking our ears off all the way to the door. She was Bill's progeny, and dated Sookie's brother's best friend. I learned all this in just that short time. I could find common ground with Sookie with time, I was certain, but I doubted that Jessica and I would be as friendly as she already thought us.

"You can breathe now, kära." Eric said to me when the car lurched out of the gravel drive of Merlotte's and onto the road. I hadn't realized that I was still guarding myself, but when I took stock of my body, I recognized that I was wound as tight as a spring.

"That wasn't so bad."

"I thought that you were going to strangle Jessica if she didn't shut up."

"I considered it." I laid my head on his chest, since I couldn't reach his shoulder. "You handled the situation well, I thought."

"As did you. You liked holding the baby."

"Yes." It never failed that Eric could read such things of me.

"It will be your turn soon enough, hjärtat av mitt hjärta. Then it will be Sookie who comes to you with congratulations. I promise."

"I know," I answered him. "I kind of liked Sookie."

"I knew that you would. You have a loving heart."

"Just not for extra pretty, overly talkative baby vamps."

"And no one will hold you accountable for that, Lotus. She is the spawn of Bill, after all."

"Speaking of Bill, don't you have to report to him that you have done what he asked?"

"You're going to make me if I say it can wait, aren't you?"

"Only if you're going to try to flake out on him."

"He's nothing but a weasel."

"If you cannot answer to a weasel, what does that make you?"

Eric narrowed his eyes at me, considering my words. Without answering me, or indeed acknowledging that he had no comeback for my words, he ordered the driver to turn around and take us to the home of the King.


	7. Chapter 7

**7**

"State your name and business."

The guard at the end of King Bill's drive was clothed head to toe in black, and was most definitely human. He was vicious looking with his automatic rifle and his headset that had an attachment for a night vision targeting sight. Though big and formidable, he would be nothing next to Eric. The fact that Eric was speaking to him from inside a vehicle disguised the vampire's lethality, and made the guard cocky.

"Eric Northman, Sheriff of Area 5. I'm here to report to the King a mission status."

"And the fangbanger's name is?"

The guard's head was through the window faster than I could see Eric move. The guards at the gate sprung into action, their guns pointed directly into the car.

"This woman is my fiancée, not some classless trashy fangbanger. You will apologize to her immediately, or those words will have been your last."

"Then the rest of the guard will light this car up like the Fourth of July." the man gasped. I sat quietly, shaking in terror of both Eric and the numerous guns pointed toward me.

From the man's headset a tiny voice could be heard in the silence that followed.

_"Make your apology, Mr. Tucker, and let Mr. Northman's car pass. Report to your superior immediately after." _

"Yes, Your Highness." the man choked out. "I apologize, ma'am, sir. I beg your forgiveness."

Eric released the man, not at all gently, and the man backed away from the car. The guards removed their aim from the car and stepped back. The driver, who had remained completely nonchalant about the whole situation, drove the car on through the gate and up the winding gravel drive under the moss laden trees that framed the lane.

"That's a beautiful house."

The house that came into view was indeed beautiful. The antebellum mansion was lit up from the outside to simulate sunlight, I assumed. There were two full length porches along the front of the house, looking much like the typical Southern pre-War mansion portrayed in modern movies. It looked that way because that was what it was, but that did not make it any less lovely.

"I hate it." Eric said.

"What? Why?"

"Because it where Bill lives."

"You vampires like to hold your grudges." Eric smirked.

"We have infinite time, and memories as long. There is little to amuse us as long or as effectively as a good grudge."

"That's a valid point, I will admit. I still think you all should find a new hobby. Animal preservation. Beach cleanup. Bingo."

I laughed at my own suggestion. The image of Eric playing bingo was as hilarious as it was ludicrous.

Eric thought that my suggestions were pretty farfetched as well, supplying a short chuckle. He placed my hand on his arm and led me up the steps of the old home. The doors were opened for us by the guards at the door, revealing the interior.

The house's decoration was a major let down. Instead of a cozy, country design like the style of the house necessitated, the interior was decorated from top to bottom in a modern, urban loft style. The urban décor did not fit the home at all, and the wall paper and furniture chosen were ghastly. The art alone was enough to make a traditionalist like myself cringe.

"Ick." I said. Eric smirked.

"Ick." he agreed. Like me, Eric preferred traditional design, though he was much more partial to bright, jewel tones whereas I preferred lighter, less loud neutrals.

"Will it be all right if I wait out here while you talk to the King?" I asked Eric, indicating the stiff looking bench seat sitting beside the double doors that were clearly where the King was greeting his visitors. The two extra large vampire guards gave it away.

"Like I'd miss the look on Bill's face when he realizes that it was you that put him in his place earlier."

"It's not nice to treat your boss like that." I teased. Boss or not, Eric loved a good comeuppance.

"But it is so satisfying."

Little time was spent waiting, as just then the double doors sprung open. A young looking male vampire with very red hair stormed out, managing to nod his head deferentially at Eric when their eyes met as he passed on his way out the front door. I took that as a sign that the king was not a kind and benevolent leader.

I kept my head up and my spine straight, determined to look proud and strong even if inside I felt like a puddle of melted gelatin. Eric released my hand where I had been clutching it. He meant nothing by it, I knew; he clasped his hands in front of him, to at least give an appearance of professionalism while in the presence of the King.

For some reason, the thought _'I'm glad I shaved my legs before we left'_ crossed my mind. Though completely strange and inappropriate, the thought inserted a bit of levity into my tense form, and I relaxed a little.

"Eric, I'm glad to see you." said King Bill as he came to stand in the doorway. He was a short man, making him look even more so while standing before Eric. The inappropriate giggle in my chest nearly jumped up into my throat before I could get a handle on it. King Bill was utterly ridiculous in his neutral grey three piece suit and equally preposterous paisley patterned tie, looking much like the little boy dressed up for holiday photos by a too-conservative mother. "Please, come in."

"Thank you." replied Eric, following Bill into his office. I came in behind Eric, since he had asked me to earlier, and since King Bill had once again neglected his manners.

"To what do I owe this visit?" asked Bill after he came to stand behind his desk. He did not invite us to sit; he wanted to make this visit a very quick one.

"I am here, Your Majesty," began Eric, his voice dripping with sarcasm though I could tell he was doing his best to hold it back, "to inform you that the deed you requested of me has been fulfilled. The Merlotte family sends their thanks and regards."

"I had thought that you would have made all haste away from Bon Temps."

"There is another matter I would like to discuss with you."

"Oh?"

I shared Bill's surprise. I had figuratively dragged Eric here. He had done the task Bill had set him; what else could he have up his sleeve? I let my face remain emotionless, which Bill had not. His small face had wrinkled up as his eyebrows moved upward in surprise. I decided that I did not at all find King Bill handsome.

"The way that you addressed my fiancée today was unacceptable. She handled your ill behavior with as much grace and diplomacy as the situation called for, but I find myself unsatisfied. I want you to apologize to her personally, and with sincerity."

This time my shock was not so easily concealed, and the same could be said of the king. I didn't know much of vampire politics, but I knew it was plain stupid for Eric to address him in the manner that he had so done.

King Bill was shocked for a much different reason.

"_Fiancée?_" The way that this king was conveying his shock was downright rude, and incensing. Try as I might to stand quietly beside Eric and let him handle this business with this superior, I found that my mouth was going to have its way with me, as it usually did in response to rudeness.

"Yes, I am his fiancée." My voice held a coldness quite similar to Eric's, offset by the fire raging behind my eyes. For the first time that evening, the small vampire king turned his eyes to me. "I would greatly appreciate it if you could at least recall some tiny semblance of human respect, King Bill, and take a millisecond out of your infinite timeline to at least properly address me. I am sure that you are used to treating the majority of your human guests as second class citizens, but I will assure you that you will refrain from doing the same with me. Please, close your mouth; your shock is not so great as to leave your jaw slack. Surely, the notion that Eric would find another romantic companion would have crossed your mind- unless you are so blinded by petty revenge tactics as to allow such oversight." Caught off guard by my frankness, the king's jaw closed. "Thank you. Now, if Eric is finished here for the evening, and you are not going to at least have the courtesy to address me at all, I would very much like for the two of us to take our leave of your ill-mannered company and the garish chaos you perceive to be décor, since I am afraid that the combination of both are causing me great agitation. Eric, are we through here?"

"We shall be, as soon as the King issues his apology to you." His face was the stoic mask of professionalism he wore when working, but I could see the sparkle of laughter dancing in his eyes. Of the three of us, he was the only one enjoying himself, if only slightly. "Your Highness?"

King Bill took a few seconds to regroup, shaking his head in the most infinitesimal of ways before straightening his spine.

"Please, let's begin again." He said to me, coming around the desk, and actually offering me his hand. The gesture brought Eric's eyebrow up slightly, and he watched closely as I shook hands with Bill to make sure that his grasp was appropriately soft. "It's nice to meet you- I am Bill Compton, King of Louisiana."

"It is a pleasure, sir. I am Lotus Smithson." Both of our pleasantries were somewhat poisonously delivered, but we tolerated the other since whatever was coming next seemed to be of importance.

King Bill invited me to sit, along with Eric, who declined so that he could stand beside me while I took the chair, and rested his big hand on my shoulder.

"Now, it was you to whom I spoke to earlier in the evening, correct?"

"Yes, it was."

"You have no problem putting a person in their place, I have noticed, no matter that person's status. Is this a consistent trait of yours?"

"It is. I have no qualms knocking someone down a peg when they are in the wrong. I would correct the President of the United States if the case warranted."

"I do believe it." Bill actually grinned. I found his smirk repulsive, especially when I mentally compared it with Eric's. "It's quite interesting that you would mention the President, however, Miss Smithson. There is-"

"No." Eric's voice rumbled from above me, and his hand gripped my shoulder in a way that I could only believe was possessive. "It is out of the question." He was glaring death at the King, which only peaked my interest. However, if Eric was opposed to whatever King Bill had been about to say, no matter how curiosity ate at me, I wouldn't undermine him in front of his superior.

"With your fiancée's obviously fierce desire to operate within accepted polite parameters, Eric, I believe it is for her to decide."

The air between them was all but whirling with tension as they sat there engaged in a silent power struggle, and my desire to know what in the world was going on won out over my desire to not undermine Eric. I reached up to where Eric's hand sat gripping my shoulder and squeezed it. He broke eye contact with the king to look down at me.

"I'd like to hear what he has to say, Eric." My tone was a carefully chosen neutral, so that I did not sound like I was demanding anything of him, but allowed me to keep my dignity, as well, since I wasn't asking him for permission. Eric looked at me for a long moment before he spoke.

"Of course. Please, continue, King Bill."

"Thank you, Eric." Bill looked smug, and continued what he had been about to say before Eric had interrupted him. "There is going to be quite the social function- I don't know what it would be called these days. A gala, perhaps?- at the end of next month, hosted by the President himself at the White House for all the vampire monarchs to encourage the meshing of the two governments."

"_That _will happen." Eric added, his sarcasm as thick as hand churned butter.

"Hardly, but showing goodwill toward the human government is still a wise move." Eric nodded his agreement. "Miss Smithson, you have shown me this very evening in no uncertain terms that I am not prepared for a function of this caliber. The limits of human manners seem to have surpassed me in the time that I have been a vampire. Between now and the gala, I would like to hire you as my personal human manners coach."

"Pardon me?" It was my turn for my eyebrows to jump upward. Whatever I had expected the vampire king to say, it had not been that.

"Hiring you to be my human manners coach would be the best move I could make. I am a dominating man, Miss Smithson, as my old-fashioned rearing molded me, and it takes one of strong character and even stronger mind to change the way I do things. In both of our brief conversations this evening, you have bent me to your will, though I fought it, with very little effort from yourself. For me to act more like a human at this most important function, I need a tutor of whom I can be sure will not be intimidated by me, and thusly, do a subpar job of re-training me. You, Miss Smithson, will not be a subpar teacher, of this I am sure."

"Indeed, I will not. However, if I am to even consider your suggestion, I need to know what gains I will take from this union." Eric's quick pressure on my shoulder told me that I had said the right thing.

"You will be paid, of course, quite handsomely. I will also need you to accompany me to this function, so you will get to attend the historic first meeting of human and vampire governments. This will make you an important person in the kingdom's affairs, therefore, you will have the best protection money can buy. All your expenses will be covered- air fare, room and board, and a clothing allowance."

"Unfortunately, King Bill," I said, "I do not trust your guards to protect me, especially after the incident tonight at your front gate. There is only one person I trust to protect me, and I think you know who that would be."

"Naturally." King Bill replied. "Eric would be most welcome to accompany you. In fact, he would be an asset. Yes… Even the First Lady would not be immune to Eric's charms."

I giggled at the vision put into my head by King Bill's words. He was right; Eric would certainly be a useful man to have along at this kind of meeting.

The phone on the king's desk beeped quietly several times, obviously a message from his secretary.

"I shall inform you of Lotus's decision within the next few days, Your Highness." Eric said, removing his hand from my shoulder and offering it to me. I took it and found my feet.

"Yes, please do. I will be anxiously waiting for your call." replied the small man. He showed us to the door, remembering his manners and thanking us for our visit and bidding us a good evening. There were several vampires and one kept human waiting in the entrance outside the double doors, including Jessica. She had removed her hostess uniform in favor of casual clothing, which did not endear her to me anymore; she was entirely too pretty. Waving at us with vamp speed was her way of acknowledging us before she skipped the others who waited in line to see the king, who ignored the fact that his progeny cut in line, and saw her next.

I couldn't relax even after we left the king's property, and I asked the driver to pull over. Eric didn't say a word as I got out of the car and headed for the line of trees along the roadside. He must have been sensing my restlessness through the blood bond we shared.

Though he didn't speak, he followed me as I tramped through the woods, tripping and stumbling more than once over the unkempt undergrowth in my less than appropriate footwear. My feet were beginning to ache pretty badly when I noticed that the trees ahead had light behind them. I exited the woods into a little cemetery mostly populated by antebellum headstones looming between the draping Spanish moss like ghosts.

I found a mossy spot under the tree in the middle of the graveyard and collapsed there, exhausted.

"Feel better?" Eric asked, sitting beside me, barely making any noise as he did so.

"A little." I said. Eric's hands slid down my legs to my feet. He slipped my shoes off, and stilled.

"We've had an eventful night." He said simply. I agreed, but said nothing more. We watched the fireflies dance in the fronds of the moss hanging above me like stars let loose from their tethers. I think I fell asleep there, because when I woke it was after noon and I was in the bed in my apartment. Eric wasn't there, since my apartment wasn't light tight, but he had left me a note on the counter bar telling me to look in the freezer. He had made me my favorite emotional overload snack- spinach and artichoke dip. His thoughtfulness made me happy and sad all at once, so I nuked the dip in the microwave and got my chips, tissues, blanket and television remote ready and settled in to watch sad television shows and have a good cry while I crunched undeserving tortilla chips.


End file.
